Welcome to the Nov. 6 edition of Robe & Gavel, Ballotpedia’s newsletter about the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and other judicial happenings around the U.S.
Did you miss us, dear reader? Fret not because we are back for the third week in a row with another fabulous installment of judicial news updates. Let’s gavel in!
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Grants
SCOTUS has accepted three new cases to its merits docket since our Oct. 30 issue. To date, the court has agreed to hear 43 cases for the 2023-2024 term. SCOTUS dismissed one case after it was accepted.
- National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo
- Coinbase, Inc. v. Suski
- Garland v. Cargill
Arguments
The Supreme Court will hear arguments in three cases this week. Click here to read more about SCOTUS’ current term.
Click the links below to learn more about these cases:
Nov. 6
- Department of Agriculture Rural Development Rural Housing Service v. Kirtz concerns the United States’ sovereign immunity from lawsuits concerning the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
- The questions presented: “Whether the civil-liability provisions of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. 1681 et seq., unequivocally and unambiguously waive the sovereign immunity of the United States.”
Nov. 7
- United States v. Rahimi concerns 18 U.S.C. § 922 and the Second Amendment.
- The questions presented: “Whether 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(8), which prohibits the possession of firearms by persons subject to domestic-violence restraining orders, violates the Second Amendment on its face.”
Nov. 8
- Rudisill v. McDonough concerns veterans’ education benefits under the Montgomery GI Bill and the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
- The questions presented: “Whether a veteran who has served two separate and distinct periods of qualifying service under the Montgomery GI Bill, 38 U.S.C. § 3001 et seq., and under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, 38 U.S.C. § 3301 et seq., is entitled to receive a total of 48 months of education benefits as between both programs, without first exhausting the Montgomery benefit in order to obtain the more generous Post-9/11 benefit.”
In its October 2022 term, SCOTUS heard arguments in 60 cases. One case was dismissed. Click here to read more about SCOTUS’ previous term.
Upcoming SCOTUS dates
Here are the court’s upcoming dates of interest:
- Nov. 6: SCOTUS will hear arguments in one case.
- Nov. 7: SCOTUS will hear arguments in one case.
- Nov. 8: SCOTUS will hear arguments in one case.
- Nov. 9: SCOTUS will conference. A conference is a private meeting of the justices.
Federal court action
Nominations
President Joe Biden (D) has announced 5 new Article III nominees since our Nov. 2 edition.
- Jacquelyn Austin, to the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina
- Jacqueline Becerra, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- Melissa Damian, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- David Leibowitz, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- Julie Sneed, to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
The president has announced 190 Article III judicial nominations since taking office on Jan. 20, 2021. For more information on the president’s judicial nominees, click here.
Committee action
The Senate Judiciary Committee has reported no new nominees out of committee since our Oct. 30 edition.
Confirmations
The Senate has confirmed one nominee since our Oct. 30 issue.
Vacancies
The federal judiciary currently has 70 vacancies, 69 of which are for lifetime Article III judgeships. As of publication, there were 34 pending nominations.
According to the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts, there were 29 upcoming vacancies in the federal judiciary, where judges have announced their intention to leave active judicial status.
For more information on judicial vacancies during President Biden’s term, click here.
Do you love judicial nomination, confirmation, and vacancy information? We figured you might. Our monthly Federal Vacancy Count monitors all the faces and places moving in, moving out, and moving on in the federal judiciary. Click here for our most current count.
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 our list for updates on federal judicial nominations.
Looking ahead
We’ll be back on Nov. 13 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.