Constitutional Law

Long-running Law Day program brings students to Yosemite National Park

For the past 12 years, students in east central California have come together to celebrate Law Day in Yosemite National Park. “It’s really cool to bring them in, show them they’re important, teach them something about civics and let them see the beautiful park,” Douglas Gordon, the co-chair of Yosemite Law Day, says.

Apr 23, 2025 10:00 AM CDT

Supreme Court majority appears to side with parents who object to instruction using LGBTQ storybooks

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday appeared ready to rule for parents who argue that they have a right to exclude their children from school lessons involving storybooks with LGBTQ characters and themes, according to publications that covered the oral arguments.

Apr 22, 2025 3:19 PM CDT

Seeing power abuse by federal judges, 5th Circuit judge warns of ‘hundreds of kings in judicial robes’

A federal appeals judge issued a concurrence to his majority opinion in a death-penalty case last week to remark on federal trial judges who, in his view, abuse their powers to overturn the will of the electorate.

Apr 21, 2025 3:32 PM CDT

State’s ban on assault weapons likely constitutional, federal appeals court rules

A Massachusetts law that bans assault weapons and large-capacity ammunition feeding devices is likely to survive a Second Amendment challenge, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Boston ruled last week.

Apr 21, 2025 2:17 PM CDT

Judge in AP case says new White House press policy appears fair

A federal judge in D.C. declined on Friday to grant a motion from the Associated Press, which argued that the White House has disobeyed his order last week forcing the administration to stop banning the news organization’s journalists from attending presidential events because of its decision to continue using the name Gulf of Mexico in its news coverage.

Apr 18, 2025 1:49 PM CDT

Sarah Palin and the NY Times are in court again; here’s why

Sarah Palin has returned to a lower Manhattan courtroom this week, determined to prove that the New York Times defamed her in a 2017 editorial that suggested a link between a map published by her political action committee and the 2011 shooting of former Democratic congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

Apr 18, 2025 10:06 AM CDT

‘Loving v. Virginia’ goes from the highest court to grand opera

This month, Virginia Opera and Richmond Symphony will present the world premiere of composer Damien Geter and librettist Jessica Murphy Moo’s Loving v. Virginia, an operatic retelling of the events leading to the landmark 1967 Supreme Court decision that declared laws against interracial marriage unconstitutional and set the stage for decades of subsequent advances in civil rights.

Apr 18, 2025 9:52 AM CDT

Supreme Court will review Trump’s attempt to ban birthright citizenship

The Supreme Court on Thursday said it will review President Donald Trump’s attempt to ban automatic U.S. citizenship for children born to undocumented immigrants and foreign visitors, scheduling a special court session for next month.

Apr 17, 2025 1:52 PM CDT

Judge finds probable cause to hold US in contempt; is Trump administration ‘at the cusp of outright defiance’?

A federal judge who banned the Trump administration from removing Venezuelan immigrants from the United States ruled Wednesday that there is probable cause to find the government in criminal contempt for willfully disobeying his directive.

Apr 16, 2025 3:53 PM CDT

Supreme Court will consider scope of Sixth Amendment right to counsel during trial recess

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether a criminal defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to counsel was violated when a judge banned him from discussing his ongoing testimony when meeting with his lawyers during an overnight trial recess.

Apr 15, 2025 2:37 PM CDT

Executive orders against firms threaten rule of law, Susman Godfrey says in suit against Trump administration

Updated: Susman Godfrey has alleged in a lawsuit filed Friday that President Donald Trump’s campaign of executive orders targeting the law firm and other well-known firms is an unconstitutional threat to the rule of law.

Apr 14, 2025 12:39 PM CDT

House committee drops information request about law clinics amid ‘ongoing negotiations’ with Northwestern

The U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Education and Workforce has withdrawn its request for information on law clinics at the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, citing "ongoing negotiations" with the university and an intent to pursue "other means of inquiry."

Apr 14, 2025 10:59 AM CDT

Revoking security clearances includes due process, which is not being followed, says whistleblower lawyer

Whistleblower lawyer Mark Zaid tells the ABA Journal in an interview that his security clearance has recently been revoked by the Trump administration. A registered independent, Zaid says he has never been involved in “a meaningful” way with any political party. “I am strictly a lawyer who represents clients.”

Apr 7, 2025 10:27 AM CDT

Can Trump serve third term? Yale Law prof sees ‘possible loophole’ to 22nd Amendment ban

Can President Donald Trump serve a third term? The 22nd Amendment appears to prevent it. “No person shall be elected to the office of the president more than twice,” it reads. But could a president serve a third term if he isn’t “elected” to the office?

Apr 3, 2025 3:01 PM CDT

Chemerinsky: Religion cases will test whether SCOTUS continues to break down walls separating church, state

In recent years, the Roberts court has dramatically changed the law with regard to the religion clauses of the First Amendment. Again, this term, the U.S. Supreme Court has several cases about the Constitution and religion.

Apr 1, 2025 3:39 PM CDT