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RULINGS
EDUCATION, CONSTITUTION
Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District, June
28
J. Roberts finds that the school districts have
not shown that the interest they seek to achieve justifies the extreme
means they have chosen: discriminating among individual students based
on race by relying on racial classifications to make school
assignments.
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ANTITRUST
Leegin Creative Leather Products v. PSKS, June 28
PSKS sued after Leegin stopped selling to PSKS's
store under a policy of refusing to sell to retailers that discount
Leegin's goods below suggested prices. The district court excluded
expert testimony about the pricing policy's pro-competitive effects on
the ground that Dr. Miles Medical Co. v. John D. Park & Sons Co., 220
U. S. 373, makes an agreement between a manufacturer and distributor
on the minimum price the distributor can charge for the manufacturer's
goods per se illegal under 1 of the Sherman Act. J. Kennedy overrules
Dr. Miles finds that vertical price restraints are to be judged by the
rule of reason.
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DEATH PENALTY
Panetti v. Quarterman, June 28
Petitioner was convicted of capital murder in a
Texas state court and sentenced to die despite his well-documented
history of mental illness. The district court found that the
state-court competency proceedings failed to comply with Texas law and
were constitutionally inadequate in light of the Eighth Amendment's
prohibition on state infliction of the death penalty upon insane
prisoners, but nevertheless granted no relief because petitioner had
not shown that he met the standard for incompetence. J. Kennedy finds
that the Fifth Circuit employed an improperly restrictive test when
the court held that petitioner was competent to be executed so long as
he knew the fact of his impending execution and the factual predicate
for the sentence. Reversed.
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CONSTITUTION
Morse v. Frederick, June 25
A high school principal saw students unfurl a
banner stating "Bong Hits 4 Jesus," which she regarded as promoting
illegal drug use. Consistent with established school policy
prohibiting such messages at school events, Morse suspended a student
who refused to take down the banner upon her request. J. Roberts finds
that schools may take steps to safeguard those entrusted to their care
from speech that can reasonably be regarded as encouraging illegal
drug use, and thus school officials did not violate the First
Amendment by confiscating the pro-drug banner and suspending the
student.
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ELECTIONS
Federal Election Commission v. Wisconsin Right to Life, June 25
Defendants put out ads that asked constituents to
call two democratic senators and tell them to oppose a filibuster over
abortion rights legislation. J. Roberts finds that the district court
properly concluded that the ads were genuine issue ads, not express
advocacy or the "functional equivalent," and held that no compelling
interest justified Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act's regulation of such
ads.
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GOVERNMENT, PROPERTY
Wilkie v. Robbins, June 25
Robbins's Wyoming guest ranch is a patchwork of
land parcels intermingled with tracts belonging to other private
owners, Wyoming, and the federal government. After discovering that
the government failed to record an easement over portions of his land,
Robbins refused to regrant the easement. J. Souter finds that Robbins
does not have a private right of action for damages under Bivens based
on claims that the government tried to force him to grant a new
easement.
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CONSTITUTION
Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation, June 25
Members of an organization opposed to government
endorsement of religion claimed that petitioners, the directors of
federal offices created by the President to ensure that faith-based
community groups are eligible to compete for federal financial
support, violated the Establishment Clause by organizing conferences
that were designed to promote religious community groups over secular
ones. J. Alito finds that the Seventh Circuit erroneously held that
federal taxpayers have standing to challenge Executive Branch programs
on Establishment Clause grounds so long as the activities are financed
by a congressional appropriation, even where there is no statutory
program and the funds are from appropriations for general
administrative expenses. Reversed.
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ENVIRONMENT, ADMINISTRATIVE LAW
National Association of Homebuilders v. Defenders of Wildlife, June 25
J. Alito finds that the Ninth Circuit erroneously
overturned an Environmental Protection Agency decision that handed
over the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System permitting
program to Arizona for the state to run. The Ninth Circuit concluded
that the EPA's decision was internally inconsistent in statements made
during the review process. The fact that a local agency
representative's preliminary determination is later overruled at a
higher agency level does not render the decision making process
arbitrary and capricious.
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EDUCATION, CONSTITUTION
Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association v. Brentwood Academy,
June 21
Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association,
which regulates interscholastic sports among Tennessee public and
private high schools, sanctioned Brentwood, a private school, because
the football coach sent eighth-grade boys a letter that violated
association rules that prohibit members from using undue influence to
recruit middle school students for their athletic programs. J. Stevens
finds that enforcing a rule that prohibits high school coaches from
recruiting middle school athletes does not violate the First Amendment
because Brentwood made a voluntary decision to join the association
and to abide by the anti-recruiting rule. Also, the association did
not violate Brentwood's due process rights.
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SECURITIES
Tellabs v. Makor Issues & Rights, June 21
The Sixth Circuit ruled that, to evaluate whether
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act's pleading standard is
met, courts should examine all of the complaint's allegations to
decide whether collectively they establish an inference of scienter;
the complaint would survive, if a reasonable person could infer that
defendant acted with the requisite state of mind. J. Ginsburg finds
that to qualify as a "strong" inference that defendant acted with the
requisite state of mind, an inference of scienter must be more than
merely plausible or reasonable; the inference must be cogent and at
least as compelling as any opposing inference of non-fraudulent
intent. Vacated.
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SENTENCING
Rita v. USA, June 21
Rita, who made false statements under oath to a
grand jury regarding whether the company he worked for sold machine
gun modification kits, sought a sentence lower than the recommended
Federal Guidelines range of 33 to 41 months based on his physical
condition, likely vulnerability in prison, and military experience.
The lower court concluded that the appropriate sentence was 33 months,
the bottom of the Guidelines range. J. Breyer finds that the Fourth
Circuit correctly observed that a sentence imposed within a properly
calculated Guidelines range is presumptively reasonable. Affirmed.
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CIVIL PROCEDURE, ENERGY
Powerex v. Reliant Energy Services, June 18
Plaintiff claimed that that various companies in
California’s energy market conspired to fix prices in violation of
state law. The suit was removed to federal court based on application
of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act to one defendant, a wholly
owned subsidiary of a British Columbia-owned power company. However,
the federal district court remanded the action to state court because
the subsidiary was not a foreign state and claims against other
governmental entities were barred by sovereign immunity. J. Scalia
finds that the Ninth Circuit did not have jurisdiction to review the
remand order because Section 1447(d) bars appellate consideration of
the subsidiary's claim that it is a foreign state for FSIA purposes.
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SECURITIES, ANTITRUST
Credit Swiss Securities v. Billings, June 18
Investors claimed that that investment banks,
acting as underwriters, violated antitrust laws when they formed
syndicates to help execute initial public offerings for several
hundred technology-related companies. J. Breyer finds that the
securities law implicitly precludes the application of the antitrust
laws to such conduct.
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SEARCH
Brendlin v. California, June 18
Police pulled over a car without reason and then
arrested defendant, a passenger that police recognized as a parole
violator. The California Supreme Court held that suppression was
unwarranted because a passenger is not seized as a constitutional
matter absent additional circumstances that would indicate to a
reasonable person that he was the subject of the officers
investigation or show of authority. J. Souter finds that when police
conduct a traffic stop, a passenger in the car, like the driver, is
seized for Fourth Amendment purposes and so may challenge the stops
constitutionality.
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LABOR
Davenport v. Washington Education Association, June 14
Petitioners claimed that a union failed to obtain
the affirmative authorization required before spending nonmembers'
agency fees for electoral purposes. J. Scalia finds there is no
violation of the First Amendment when a state requires public-sector
unions to receive affirmative authorization from a nonmember before
spending that nonmember's agency fees for election-related purposes.
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GOVERNMENT, TAX, IMMUNITY
Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations v. New York City,
June 14
Under New York law, real property owned by a
foreign government is exempt from taxation when used exclusively for
diplomatic offices or quarters for ambassadors or ministers
plenipotentiary to the United Nations. J. Thomas finds that the
Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act does not immunize a foreign
government from a lawsuit to declare the validity of tax liens on
property held by the sovereign for the purpose of housing its
employees.
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CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
Bowles v. Russel, June 14
Having failed to file a timely notice of appeal
from the denial of habeas relief, Bowles moved to reopen the filing
period under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 4(a)(6), which allows
a district court to grant a 14-day extension under certain conditions.
The district court granted Bowles' motion but inexplicably gave him 17
days to file his notice of appeal and so he filed within the 17 days
allowed by the district court, but after the 14-day period allowed by
Rule 4(a)(6). J. Thomas finds that Bowles' untimely notice of appeal,
though filed in reliance upon the District Court's order, deprived the
Sixth Circuit of jurisdiction.
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LABOR, ERISA
Beck v. PACE International Union, June 11
A union that represented employees covered by
single-employer defined-benefit pension plans sponsored and
administered by Crown, which had filed for bankruptcy, proposed to
terminate the plans by merging them with the union's own multiemployer
plan, but Crown instead opted for a standard termination through the
purchase of annuities. J. Scalia finds that Crown did not breach its
fiduciary obligations through the failure to consider the union's
merger proposal because merger is not a permissible form of plan
termination under ERISA.
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ENVIRONMENT
USA v. Atlantic Research Corporation, June 11
Atlantic Research cleaned up a government site
that the company leased and contaminated while doing government work,
and then sued the government to recover some of the costs of the
voluntary clean up. The district court dismissed the case and held
that Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability
Act only authorized a potentially responsible party to seek
contribution after having been sued. J. Thomas finds that the Eighth
Circuit correctly held that contribution is not the exclusive remedy
to recover cleanup costs and that the Act provides a cause of action
for a private party to recover voluntarily incurred response costs and
to seek contribution.
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CIVIL PROCEDURE
Watson v. Philip Morris, June 11
Petitioners claimed that Philip Morris violated
Arkansas unfair business practice laws by advertising cigarette brands
as "light" when, in fact, Philip Morris had manipulated test results
to register lower levels of tar and nicotine in the advertised
cigarettes than would be delivered to consumers. The district court
upheld Philip Morris's removal to federal court because the complaint
attacked Philip Morris' use of the government's method of testing
cigarettes and thus that petitioners had sued Philip Morris for acting
under the Federal Trade Commission. J. Breyer finds that the fact that
a federal agency directs, supervises, and monitors a company's
activities in considerable detail does not bring that company the
removal statute's scope. Reversed.
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LABOR
Long Island Care at Home v. Coke, June 11
A companionship services provider to the elderly
and infirm sued her former employer, Long Island Care, for minimum and
overtime wages they allegedly owed her. J. Breyer finds that the third
party regulation, which also exempts those companionship workers
"employed by an agency other than the family or household using their
services," is a valid exercise of the Department of Labor's gap
filling authority. Denial of overtime affirmed.
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EVIDENCE
Fry v. Pliler, June 11
The trial judge excluded testimony of a defense
witness but the California Court of Appeal stated, without specifying
which harmless-error standard applied, that "no possible prejudice"
could have resulted in light of the cumulative nature of the witness's
testimony. A federal magistrate judge found the state appellate
court's failure to recognize the error was an unreasonable application
of clearly established law, and disagreed with the finding of no
possible prejudice, but concluded there was an insufficient showing
that the improper exclusion of the testimony had a "substantial and
injurious effect" on the jury's verdict. J. Scalia finds that a
federal court must assess the prejudicial impact of constitutional
error in a state-court criminal trial under Brecht's "substantial and
injurious effect" standard, whether or not the state appellate court
recognized the error and reviewed it for harmlessness under the
"harmless beyond a reasonable doubt" standard.
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CONSUMER LAW, INSURANCE
SafeCo Insurance of America v. Burr, June 4
Edo's credit score was taken into account when
GEICO issued him a policy, but GEICO sent no adverse action notice
because his placement would have been the same with a neutral score;
while Safeco offered Burr and Massey higher than the best rates
possible without sending adverse action notices. J. Souter finds that
the willful failure to provide adverse notice action covers a
violation committed in reckless disregard of the notice obligation.
Where willfulness is a statutory condition of civil liability, it is
generally taken to cover not only knowing violations of a standard,
but reckless ones as well. Initial rates charged for new insurance
policies may be adverse actions. Finally, GEICO did not violate the
Fair Credit Reporting Act, and while Safeco might have, it did not act
recklessly.
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ATTORNEY FEES, CONSTITUTION
Sole v. Wyner, June 4
An artist that wished to conduct a nude
photo-shoot on Valentine's day at a public beach obtained a
preliminary injunction that resulted in her being able to complete the
shoot behind a visual barrier to protect the public from having to see
the nudity. J. Ginsburg finds that prevailing party status does not
attend achievement of a preliminary injunction that is reversed,
dissolved, or otherwise undone by the final decision in the same case.
"This Court expresses no view on whether, in the absence of a final
decision on the merits of a claim for permanent injunctive relief,
success in gaining a preliminary injunction may sometimes warrant an
award of counsel fees. It decides only that a plaintiff who gains a
preliminary injunction does not qualify for an award of counsel fees
if the merits of the case are ultimately decided against her."
Reversed.
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DEATH PENALTY JUROR
Uttecht v. Brown, June 4
The 9th Circuit overturned defendant's
death sentence when it ruled that the state trial court had violated
Brown's rights by excusing a juror for cause because the juror could
not impartially decided whether to impose a death sentence. J. Kennedy
finds that federal habeas courts owe deference to the trial court,
which is in a superior position to determine a potential juror's
demeanor and qualifications. Contrary to the Ninth Circuit's
conclusion, the State Supreme Court explicitly found that Juror Z was
substantially impaired.
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CRIMINAL PROCEDURE, PRISONER RIGHTS
Erickson v. Pardus, June 4
Petitioner claimed that a liver condition from
hepatitis C required a treatment program that officials had commenced
but then wrongfully terminated, with life-threatening consequences.
Deeming the allegations to be conclusory, the Tenth Circuit upheld the
dismissal of petitioner's complaint. Per curiam, the High Court finds
that "the holding departs in so stark a manner from the pleading
standard mandated by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure that we
grant review."
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CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
Claiborne v. USA, June 4
Per curiam, the High Court dismisses the appeal
as moot since petitioner died on May 30, 2007.
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ORDERS LISTS
Orders List, June 4
Orders List, June 11
Orders List, June 18
Orders List, June 25
Orders List, June 29 |
