Supreme Court Poll
Concurring Opinions has a simple but interesting Supreme Court poll on their site right now. Prof. Dave Hoffman asks us which of this year's Supreme Court cases will be most significant. The options are Gonzales v Carhart, Massachusetts v EPA, Meredith v Jefferson County Board of Education, Phillip Morris v Williams, Burton v Waddington, KSR International v Teleflex, Bell Atlantic v Twombly, Environmental Defense v Duke Energy, Rockwell International v US, or a yet to be granted case. I went with my gut reaction and chose Carhart.
The partial birth abortion issue specifically and abortion in general are such hot topic Supreme Court issues. Everyone will be watching our two newest Justices to see how they tackle their first abortion case. We will also be watching to see if Justice Kennedy changes his mind on the issue, as he has been prone to do on occasion. Meredith is a contender too, considering how touchy race-based school issues are in this country. As a more practical matter, Phillip Morris may be the most important case, because of the effects it may have on punitive damages limits.
At the end of the day, I think my gut reaction was right. Carhart will be the biggest case of the term. The Court hasn't decided to hear many cases yet, but there are quite a few high profile ones. This term should be much more interesting than last term.
The partial birth abortion issue specifically and abortion in general are such hot topic Supreme Court issues. Everyone will be watching our two newest Justices to see how they tackle their first abortion case. We will also be watching to see if Justice Kennedy changes his mind on the issue, as he has been prone to do on occasion. Meredith is a contender too, considering how touchy race-based school issues are in this country. As a more practical matter, Phillip Morris may be the most important case, because of the effects it may have on punitive damages limits.
At the end of the day, I think my gut reaction was right. Carhart will be the biggest case of the term. The Court hasn't decided to hear many cases yet, but there are quite a few high profile ones. This term should be much more interesting than last term.
