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Obama Supreme Court Pick Coming By May 26

joshua — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 16:57:42 +0000

One day after President Barack Obama met informally with potential replacements for retiring Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, The Hill is reporting a nomination will come no later than May 26.

The story notes that is the same day Obama nominated Justice Sotomayor last year, though White House officials also added the nomination could come “well before then.”

White House officials hope by putting the new nominee on the same confirmation schedule as Sotomayor, or even sooner, there will be plenty of time for a new justice to be confirmed and seated by the August recess, The Hill reports.

The Associated Press reports Obama made contact with potential nominees Wednesday, though it was unclear whether it was in person, over the phone or another form of communication.

On Wednesday, Obama met with leaders on Capitol Hill for a consulting session on potential nominees. In the discussion, he said abortion would not be a “litmus test” for any potential nominee, but indicated support of personal privacy and women’s rights will likely be mandatory.

“That’s going to be something that’s very important to me,” Obama said in response to a question about a woman’s right to choose.

“I think part of what our constitutional values promote is the notion that individuals have protection in their privacy, and their bodily integrity, and women are not exempt from that,” Obama said.

The Associated Press reports it took Obama 25 days to choose Sotomayor last year and less than half that time has elapsed since Stevens retirement announcement on April 9.

Morning Roundup

joshua — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 17:20:35 +0000

Good morning everyone! This is your morning roundup for Wednesday, December 9.

Tiger Woods has reportedly retained LA Boutique Lavely & Singer…

Justice Sotomayor has issued her first opinion as a Supreme…

More deferralsat Mcdermott Will & Emery…

and DLA Piper is abandoning lockstep compensation…

Sotomayor Issues First Opinion

joshua — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 01:39:03 +0000

The Supreme Court handed down several decisions today, including the first written by Justice Sotomayor. In keeping with tradition, it was a unanimous decision, although Justice Thomas issued a concurrence. The case was Mohawk Industries V. Carpenter, an attorney-client privilege case in which the Court upheld the lower court’s ruling that a federal judge’s decision releasing documents created by Mohawk Industries’ lawyer could not be appealed.

The highly anticipated ruling in the Citizens United case was not handed down.

Morning Roundup

joshua — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:35:44 +0000

Good morning everyone. It’s Monday, November 16, and here’s a quick look back at the recent news.

Justice Sotomayor is the most active questioner on the Court, accoding to the National Law Journal…

A group of students and parents is suing the Chicago school district in the wake of the violent death of a student…

Now that Intel and AMD have come to terms, we look at the law firms behind the battle…

and Greg Craig is stepping down as White House chief counsel…

For my fellow skywatchers, tonight the earth will pass through the debris of the swift-tuttle comet, treating us to what is commonly referred to as the Leonids – a bright and colorful meteor shower named for the constellation Leo. For best times to view and more information, check this link.

Sotomayor Emerges as the Court’s Most Prolific Questioner

joshua — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:53:48 +0000

Nobody expected her to be a wallflower, but Justice Sotomayor has exceeded expectations when it comes to questioning lawyers during oral arguments. In a report issued by the National Law Journal, Sotomayor came out on top in the number of questions asked so far this term with 146. Chief Justice Roberts followed with 110 questions.

According to the NLJ, the Court as a whole has become more talkative in recent years, with the number of questions and interruptions steadily increasing – for all except Justice Thomas, who hasn’t asked a question since 2006.

Justice Sotomayor Will Throw First Pitch at Yankees Game

joshua — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:52:23 +0000

Justice Sotomayor, a long time fan of the New York Yankees, will throw the ceremonial first pitch this Saturday. The Yankees are celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, and Sotomayor is a native of the Bronx and the first Hispanic to sit on the Court, making her an obvious choice.

Sotomayor already has a history with Major League Baseball. It was her ruling in 1995 that ended the baseball strike.

Big Week for Supreme Court

joshua — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 23:01:04 +0000

The week started out with a bang this morning with the investiture ceremony for new Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor. The event itself was relatively low key and simple. In attendance were luminaries including the President and Vice-President, Attorney General Holder, retired Justice Souter, and several former Attorneys General and Solicitors General. Among these were former SG Gregory Garre who has just taken a partnership at Latham & Watkins and former SG Ted Olsonwho will be back before the Court tomorrow morning.

On Wednesday, Olson will appear before the Court on behalf of Citizens United in another challenge to McCain-Feingold. Citizens United prepared a film about Hillary Clinton that was intended to discredit her during her presidential campaign. It received limited playtime in some theatres but was not widely distributed due to an FCC ruling under McCain-Feingold. At the end of last term, the Court granted cert. and asked the parties to broaden the scope of the argument – essentially asking if the Court should reverse two earlier cases restricting corporate money in political campaigns.