Argument Preview Background Widely hailed as the most important securities law case in a generation, Stoneridge Investment Partners, LLP v. Scientific-Atlanta, et al. asks under what (if any) circumstances private investors can sue actors – whether accountants, lawyers, financial advisors or other businesses – that...
Although the Court granted cert. to consider whether the term “proceeds†as used in 18 U.S.C. 1956(a)(1) refers to gross receipts or net profits, it was not at all clear from the oral argument whether a majority of the Court would actually...
The Supreme Court, sounding even more skeptical about restricting federal judges’ power to select criminal sentences, spent two hours Tuesday in a seeming exploration of how to salvage something workable in the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines system and how to fashion a remaining...
Oral arguments were held on October 1, 2007. Arguing on behalf of the Board, attorney Leonard Koerner contended that when the Court decided Burlington, IDEA had no provisions addressing the relationship between children and private schools. Only in the 1997 amendments did Congress...
Argument Preview By Lauren Beck Watson v. United States, No. 06-571, presents the question whether receipt of an unloaded firearm as payment for drugs constitutes “use†of a firearm during and in relation to a drug offense. If such receipt does qualify as “use,â€...
Argument Preview By Amy Howe Does the term “proceeds†in 18 U.S.C. 1956(a)(1), which prohibits money laundering, refer to the gross receipts of illegal activity or only the profits of that activity? On October 3, 2007, the Supreme Court will consider this question...
Argument Preview By Scott Street In New York State Board of Elections v. Lopez Torres, the Supreme Court will determine whether a state violates the First Amendment rights of voters and candidates when it requires judicial candidates to seek their party’s nomination through a...
Argument Preview By Lyle Denniston In Kimbrough v. United States, the Supreme Court will consider the authority of federal judges to impose a criminal sentence for a cocaine crime below the 100-to-1 ratio of “crack†to powder cocaine. The ratio directly relates to the...
Argument Preview In Gall v. United States, the Supreme Court again returns to the question of federal judges’ authority to decide the punishment for convicted criminals under the Sentencing Guidelines crafted by the United States Sentencing Commission. The specific issue is whether a...
Argument Preview By Chastity E. Bedonie Background Congress enacted the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEAâ€) “to ensure that all children with disabilities have available to them a free appropriate public education†(“FAPEâ€). Under the IDEA, each student with a disability must receive an...
