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Joan and Irwin Jacobs Supreme Court Docket
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Featured
U.S. Supreme Court
Jun 2020
Immigrants' Rights
Department of Homeland Security v. Vijayakumar Thuraissigiam
Whether immigrants are entitled to seek judicial review of their “expedited removal” orders in federal court.
U.S. Supreme Court
Jun 2020
LGBTQ Rights
R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes v EEOC & Aimee Stephens
Aimee Stephens had worked for nearly six years as a funeral director at R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes when she informed the funeral home’s owner that she is a transgender woman. She was fired, the EEOC sued on her behalf, and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Aimee’s employer engaged in unlawful sex discrimination when it fired her because she’s transgender. We represented Aimee Stephens in front of the U.S. Supreme Court — and won.
U.S. Supreme Court
May 2020
Civil Liberties
Trump v. Vance
Whether President Trump should comply with a grandy jury subpoena and hand over his personal finance documents.
U.S. Supreme Court
May 2020
Religious Liberty
Little Sisters of the Poor v. Pennsylvania and New Jersey/Trump v. Pennsylvania and New Jersey
Whether the government had statutory authority under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 to expand the conscience exemption to the contraceptive-coverage mandate.
U.S. Supreme Court
May 2020
Civil Liberties
Trump v. Mazars/Trump v. Deutsche Bank AG
Whether President Trump should comply with congressional subpoenas and hand over his personal finance documents.
U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
LGBTQ Rights
Altitude Express Inc. v. Zarda
Don Zarda loved to skydive. He worked as a skydiving instructor at Altitude Express, a company on Long Island, N.Y. He was fired for being gay.
All Cases
17 Supreme Court Cases during the 2019 Term
U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
Immigrants' Rights
Ovalles v. Barr & Guerrero-LaSprilla v. Barr
Whether a lawful permanent resident convicted of a crime can appeal a final removal order, where the court denied judicial review because it found that he lacked diligence for equitable tolling purposes.
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U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
Immigrants' Rights
Ovalles v. Barr & Guerrero-LaSprilla v. Barr
Whether a lawful permanent resident convicted of a crime can appeal a final removal order, where the court denied judicial review because it found that he lacked diligence for equitable tolling purposes.
U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
Juvenile Justice
Mathena v. Malvo
Whether a juvenile sentenced to life without parole is entitled to a new sentencing proceeding following the Supreme Court's decision in Montgomery v. Louisiana, which have retroactive effect to a previous decision prohibiting mandatory sentences of life without parole for juveniles, where it is unclear whether the original sentence was imposed under a mandatory or discretionary state sentencing scheme.
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U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
Juvenile Justice
Mathena v. Malvo
Whether a juvenile sentenced to life without parole is entitled to a new sentencing proceeding following the Supreme Court's decision in Montgomery v. Louisiana, which have retroactive effect to a previous decision prohibiting mandatory sentences of life without parole for juveniles, where it is unclear whether the original sentence was imposed under a mandatory or discretionary state sentencing scheme.
U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
Capital Punishment
McKinney v. Arizona
Mr. James Erin McKinney was sentenced to death by a judge who failed to consider significant mitigating evidence concerning Mr. McKinney’s PTSD.
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U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
Capital Punishment
McKinney v. Arizona
Mr. James Erin McKinney was sentenced to death by a judge who failed to consider significant mitigating evidence concerning Mr. McKinney’s PTSD.
U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
Racial Justice
Voting Rights
Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico v. Aurelius Investment, LLC
The ACLU filed an amicus brief in connection with a case addressing the constitutionality of the financial oversight board established for Puerto Rico by Congress in 2016.
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U.S. Supreme Court
Sep 2019
Racial Justice
Voting Rights
Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico v. Aurelius Investment, LLC
The ACLU filed an amicus brief in connection with a case addressing the constitutionality of the financial oversight board established for Puerto Rico by Congress in 2016.
U.S. Supreme Court
Aug 2019
Immigrants' Rights
Hernandez v. Mesa
Whether the parents of a 15-year old Mexican boy who was fatally shot by a United States Border Patrol Agent can bring a Bivens action against the Agent for using deadly force in violation of the Fourth and Fifth Amendments when there is no alternative remedy.
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U.S. Supreme Court
Aug 2019
Immigrants' Rights
Hernandez v. Mesa
Whether the parents of a 15-year old Mexican boy who was fatally shot by a United States Border Patrol Agent can bring a Bivens action against the Agent for using deadly force in violation of the Fourth and Fifth Amendments when there is no alternative remedy.
How Do Terms Work?
Between October and late June or early July the Supreme Court is “in session,” meaning it hears oral arguments, issues written decisions, and decides whether to take additional cases.
Submitting petitions
Our legal team at the ACLU files a cert petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, a type of petition that usually argues that a lower court has incorrectly decided an important question of law that violates civil rights and should be fixed to prevent similar confusion in similar cases.
term starts
U.S. Supreme Court decides to take a case
On average, the Court considers about 7,000 ‐ 8,000 petitions each term and accepts about 80 for oral argument.
Oral arguments
This is the period where the U.S. Supreme Court listens to our case in court.
U.S. Supreme Court makes final decisions
While the U.S. Supreme Court makes decisions throughout the term, many are released right before the term ends. If a decision doesn't go in our favor, we fight back!