SCOTUS TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS | Twelve Major Cases Left For The Term | Rumor Mill On Overdrive
May 21, 2018
TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS
|Today the Supreme Court ruled that employers can block employees from banding together as a class to fight legal disputes in employment arbitration agreements. The decision notes that workers don’t have a right to go to court to sue over violations of federal workplace laws. Instead, they must accept industry-sponsored arbitration that may not allow them to come together as a group or class. The justices split 5-4 with JUSTICE NEIL GORSUCH writing for the majority. JUSTICE RUTH BADER GINSBURG took the rare step of reading her dissent from the bench calling the majority opinion “egregiously wrong.” She said, “The court today holds enforceable these arm-twisted, take-it-or-leave-it contracts – including the provisions requiring employees to litigate wage and hours claims only one-by-one. Federal labor law does not countenance such isolation of employees.” The decision is a huge victory for business interests.
SUPREME COURT SCORECARD
|So what are the big cases left for the Supreme Court to decide? The Constitution Daily staff gives us an update on twelve significant decisions due to be handed down before the end of the term. Those cases include the two on partisan gerrymandering and one on a baker’s refusal to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple. But that’s only the tip of the spear.
ALL EYES ON ME IN THE CENTER OF THE RING JUST LIKE A CIRCUS
|“Like clockwork, Washington has whipped itself into a frenzy over rumors of a possible retirement on the Supreme Court.” Lydia Wheeler writes in The Hill about the rumor mill kicking into overdrive about a potential JUSTICE ANTHONY KENNEDY retirement. Some say the fact that he’s hired clerks for next term isn’t enough to indicate he’s going to stay, others say the rumors are just wishful thinking ahead of what’s likely to be a rough midterm election for Republicans.
TOP-ED
|The Wall Street Journal, Eric Tirschwell argues the NRA’s top priority of concealed carry reciprocity would violate the Constitution and therefore cannot pass legal muster. “Concealed-carry reciprocity is a bad idea, one most law-enforcement agencies strongly oppose. It would be an unprecedented intrusion into state and local decisions about public safety. But if that doesn’t convince the gun lobby, it should consider the idea’s dubious constitutionality.”
OTHER NEWS
Virginia Uranium Mining Dispute Draws U.S. Supreme Court Review
Bloomberg“The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to consider overturning a ban on mining at the site of the nation’s largest known uranium deposit, heeding calls from the Trump administration and the companies that own the Virginia land. Virginia Energy Resources Inc. and other companies contend in their appeal that the state ban runs afoul of the U.S. Atomic Energy Act. They say that law puts the subject of nuclear safety entirely in the hands of federal regulators.”
Indian Tribes Dig In To Gain Their Share Of Sports Betting
The New York Times“State officials from California to Connecticut spent last week maneuvering for control of the tens of billions of dollars in projected revenue from sports betting, and joining them was another group of powerful, and familiar, gambling operators aiming to claim their piece of the action: American Indian tribes.”
Dispute On Eye Drop Size Fails To Catch Supreme Court's Eye, Lawsuit Allowed To Go Forward
The Associated Press“A dispute about the size of eye drops has failed to catch the eye of the Supreme Court. Drug companies including Allergan, Bausch & Lomb, Merck and Pfizer had asked the court to get involved in the case. The companies were sued by patients using their eye drops to treat glaucoma and other eye conditions. The high court said Monday that it won’t take the case.”