Articles

State, community group urge SCOTUS to reject Lake Michigan access case

The state of Indiana and a community group favoring public access to the shore of Lake Michigan have filed briefs urging the Supreme Court of the United States to reject an appeal that could partly privatize the state’s 45 miles of Great Lakes beaches. Briefs filed Friday urge the high court to affirm the Indiana Supreme Court ruling that found the public has a right to walk along the shore of Lake Michigan from the water’s edge to the ordinary high water mark.

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Low-key days at Supreme Court may be ending soon

The Supreme Court began its term with the tumultuous confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, followed by a studied avoidance of drama on the high court bench — especially anything that would divide the five conservatives and four liberals. But when they gather in private on Friday to consider new cases for arguments in April and into next term, the justices will confront a raft of high-profile appeals.

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Roberts’ year-end report focuses on sexual harassment in judiciary

Following the year of the #MeToo movement and the retirement of a former 9th Circuit Court of Appeals judge accused of sexual harassment, Chief Justice John G. Roberts pushed in his most recent end-of-the-year report that more can be done to encourage judicial employees to report misconduct.

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SCOTUS rejects net neutrality appeal

The Supreme Court has ended the court fight over repealed Obama-era “net neutrality” rules that required internet providers to treat all online traffic equally. The court on Monday rejected appeals from the telecommunications industry seeking to throw out a lower court ruling in favor of the “net neutrality” rules. 

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Justices weigh $8.5M settlement with $0 to 129M Google users

The Supreme Court struggled Wednesday over what to do about an $8.5 million class-action settlement involving Google and privacy concerns in which all the money went to lawyers and nonprofit groups, but nothing was paid to 129 million people who used Google to perform internet searches.

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Bitter fight over Kavanaugh shadows a conservative court

The moment conservatives have dreamed about for decades has arrived with Brett Kavanaugh joining the Supreme Court. But with it comes the shadow of a bitter confirmation fight that is likely to hang over the court as it takes on divisive issues, especially those dealing with politics and women’s rights.

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Dems see Kavanaugh as Obamacare threat, but law likely safe

The heated debate over how Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh would vote on the Affordable Care Act might not matter. As long as five past defenders of the health care law remain on the nation’s highest court, the odds tilt in favor of it being allowed to stand. Some Democrats are warning that President Donald Trump’s designee could spell doom for the statute, even as some conservatives are portraying Kavanaugh as sympathetic to former President Barack Obama’s landmark legislation.

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Court upholds Trump travel ban, rejects discrimination claim

A sharply divided U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld President Donald Trump’s ban on travel from several mostly Muslim countries, rejecting a challenge that it discriminated against Muslims or exceeded his authority. A dissenting justice said the outcome was a historic mistake.

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