Each week, the Appellate Advocacy Blog Weekly Roundup presents a few tidbits of news and Twitter posts from the past week concerning appellate advocacy. As always, if you see something during the week that you think we should be sure to include, feel free to send a quick note to either (1) Dan Real at DReal@Creighton.edu or on Twitter (@Daniel_L_Real) or (2) Catharine Du Bois at DuBoisLegalWriting@gmail.com or on Twitter @CLDLegalWriting.
US Supreme Court News and Opinions:
It was a very busy final week of the term for the Supreme Court, with a number of orders and opinions released throughout the week.
On Monday, the Court rejected requests to review two cases concerning the ability of courts to intervene in disputes arising in religious settings, declining to resolve separation of church and state disputes. More from Bloomberg.
Also on Monday, the Court declined to review a lower federal court decision that found a school violated the Constitutional rights of a transgender student when it imposed a policy banning him from using the boys’ restroom. More from BuzzFeed.
Also on Monday, the Court struck down barriers to challenging governmental takings of property in federal court, ruling that the “exhaustion requirement” imposed before bringing suit in federal court only requires giving a state agency a chance to weigh in, rather than requiring following all of the agency’s administrative procedures. More from Bloomberg.
Also on Monday, the Court vacated an Eighth Circuit opinion and remanded a case involving assertions of excessive force by St. Louis police who restrained an inmate in an incident in which he died. The Court ruled that the appellate court deemed as “insignificant” facts that should have been given consideration in deciding whether to grant summary judgment on the excessive force claim, reviving the claim. More from Courthouse News.
On Tuesday, the Court ruled against a group of noncitizens who had applied for “withholding” relief — a remedy that involves an exception to the typical action of expeditiously again removing noncitizens who have been removed but are found back in the United States when there is risk of returning them to a country where they might face torture or persecution. More from Scotusblog.
Also on Tuesday, the Court ruled that states cannot stop developers from using the federal government’s power of eminent domain to seize property for construction of a natural-gas pipeline through the state. More from Scotusblog.
Also on Tuesday, the Court refused to lift the federal moratorium on evictions during the COVID-19 outbreak, leaving the ban in place until the end of July, as extended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More from Bloomberg.
On Thursday, the Court upheld voting restrictions imposed by Arizona, limiting cases under the Voting Rights Act. The ruling will make it more difficult to contest state-imposed election regulations. More from Scotusblog.
Also on Thursday, the Court struck down a California requirement that charities and nonprofit organizations operating in the state disclose to the state attorney general’s office the names and addresses of the organization’s largest donors. More from Scotusblog.
On Friday, the Court issued a summary reversal in the case of an Alabama death row inmate who had won habeas corpus relief in the lower court, upending the death row inmate’s win. More from Bloomberg.
In the ongoing discussion of whether Justice Breyer will or should consider retiring and allowing President Biden to name and seek confirmation of his replacement, Breyer’s friend Kenneth Feinberg writes that Breyer is “at the top of his game” right now. See the piece at Law.com.
Federal Appellate Court News and Opinions:
This week, the Tenth Circuit issued a ruling that mostly upheld Oklahoma’s mandatory bar dues as Constitutional. More from Law360.
Appellate Practice Tips and Pointers:
Appellate Twitter provided a couple of great threads this week, with appellate practitioners providing some great thoughts on effective advocacy.
Carl Cecere started a thread on Monday discussing the value of Introductions and Summaries in appellate briefs, an all-too-often overlooked opportunity for good advocacy.
Tobias Loss-Eaton started a thread on Thursday discussing the virtues of doing trial level work and trial level briefs, even if you aspire to some kind of “idealized” practice of high court appellate brief writing, because of the insight and development it can provide.
Appellate Jobs:
The Seventh Circuit is accepting applications for positions in the court’s Office of Staff Law Clerks to begin in the fall of 2022. Application information HERE.