Welcome to the April 7 edition of Robe & Gavel, Ballotpedia’s newsletter about the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and other judicial happenings around the U.S.
It’s that time again, dear reader. SCOTUS has been busy reviewing cases, and we’ve got a bunch of new updates coming your way. So grab a seat, and let’s gavel in!
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Grants
SCOTUS has accepted two new cases to its merits docket since our March 10 edition. To date, the court has agreed to hear 64 cases for the 2024-2025 term and six cases for its 2025-2026 term. By this time during the 2023-2024 term, SCOTUS had agreed to hear 62 cases.
Arguments
The Supreme Court will not hear any arguments this week. Click here to read more about SCOTUS’ current term.
In its October 2023-2024 term, SCOTUS heard arguments in 62 cases. Click here to read more about SCOTUS’ previous term.
Opinions
SCOTUS has ruled on three cases since our March 31 edition. The court has issued rulings in 24 cases so far this term. By this time during the 2023-2024 term, SCOTUS had issued rulings in 11 cases.
Click the links below to read more about the specific cases SCOTUS ruled on since March 31:
April 2
Medical Marijuana, Inc. v. Horn was argued before the court on Oct. 15, 2024.
The case: concerns damages claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). SCOTUS ruled on whether economic harms from personal injuries are injuries to “business or property by reason of” the defendant’s acts for purposes of civil RICO suits.
The outcome: In a 5-4 opinion, the court affirmed and remanded the judgment of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, holding that under civil RICO, §1964(c), a plaintiff can seek treble damages for business or property loss even if the loss was from a personal injury. Justice Amy Coney Barrett delivered the opinion of the court.
- To remand a case means to return it to a lower court for additional proceedings.
Food and Drug Administration v. Wages and White Lion Investments, LLC was argued before the court on Dec. 2, 2024.
The case: concerns a legal challenge to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) regulation of e-cigarettes. SCOTUS ruled on whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit erred in setting aside the FDA’s denial of applications to market new e-cigarette products as arbitrary and capricious.
The outcome: In a unanimous opinion, the court vacated and remanded the judgment of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The court ruled against the Fifth Circuit’s conclusion that the FDA acted arbitrarily and capriciously in denying the applications of manufacturers to market new e-cigarette products.
- To vacate means to void, cancel, nullify, or invalidate a verdict or judgment of a court.
When making its decision, the court considered the respondent’s argument that “the FDA told them in guidance documents that it would do one thing and then turned around and did something different when it reviewed their applications.” Through the change-in-position doctrine,“[a]gencies are free to change their existing policies as long as they provide a reasoned explanation for the change.” SCOTUS determined that the FDA’s denial orders were consistent enough with the guidance it gave manufacturers before denying their applications. Therefore, the orders did not violate the change-in-position doctrine. Justice Samuel Alito delivered the opinion of the court.
April 7
Department of Education v. California is a case that was decided per curiam.
The Federal Vacancy Count
The Federal Vacancy Count tracks vacancies, nominations, and confirmations to all U.S. Article III federal courts in a one-month period. This month’s edition includes nominations, confirmations, and vacancies from March 2 to April 1.
Highlights
- Vacancies: There have been no new judicial vacancies since the March 1 report. There are 45 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial positions on courts covered in this report. Including the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the U.S. territorial courts, 45 of 890 active federal judicial positions are vacant.
- Nominations: There were no new nominations since the March 2025 report.
- Confirmations: There were no new confirmations since the March 2025 report.
Vacancy count for April 1, 2025
A breakdown of the vacancies at each level can be found in the table below. For a more detailed look at the vacancies in the federal courts, click here.
*Though the U.S. territorial courts are named as district courts, they are not Article III courts. They are created in accordance with the power granted under Article IV of the U.S. Constitution. Click here for more information.
New vacancies
No judges left active status since the previous vacancy count, creating Article III life-term judicial vacancies. The president nominates individuals to fill Article III judicial position vacancies. Nominations are subject to U.S. Senate confirmation.
The following chart tracks the number of vacancies in the U.S. Courts of Appeals from President Donald Trump’s (R) inauguration to the date indicated on the chart.
U.S. District Court vacancies
The following map shows the number of vacancies in the U.S. District Courts as of April 1.
New nominations
President Donald Trump (R) announced no new nominations since the previous report.
According to the latest data from the Federal Judicial Center, in his first term, Trump made the earliest judicial nomination in a presidency of any president since Ronald Reagan (R). On Feb. 1, 2017, Trump nominated Justice Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court. President Joe Biden (D) made his first set of nominations on April 19, 2021. President Barack Obama (D) made his first nomination on March 17, 2009, and President George W. Bush’s (R) first nomination was on May 9, 2001.
New confirmations
There were no new confirmations since the previous report.
Comparison of Article III judicial appointments over time by president (1981-Present)
- From Ronald Reagan (R) through Donald Trump’s (R) second term, no president made Article III judicial appointments through April 1 of their first year.
- President Joe Biden (D) made the most appointments through four years with 235. President Reagan made the fewest through four years with 166.
- President Bill Clinton (D) made the most appointments through two years with 128. President Barack Obama (D) made the fewest with 62.
- President Reagan made the most appointments through one year in office with 41. President Obama made the fewest with 13.
Need a daily fix of judicial nomination, confirmation, and vacancy information? Click here for continuing updates on the status of all federal judicial nominees.
Or, keep an eye on this list for updates on federal judicial nominations.
Looking ahead
We’ll be back on April 21 with a new edition of Robe & Gavel. Until then, gaveling out!
Contributions
Myj Saintyl compiled and edited this newsletter, with contributions from Sam Post and Ellie Mikus.