Tag: Federal Courts
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Senate confirms sixth Trump nominee to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals
The U.S. Senate has confirmed Andrew Brasher to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit on a 52-43 vote. Overall, the Senate has confirmed 188 of President Trump’s Article III judicial nominees—two Supreme Court justices, 51 appellate court judges, 133 district court judges, and two U.S. Court of International Trade judges—since January 2017.…
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Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for January
In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies from January 3, 2020, to February 3, 2020. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month. HIGHLIGHTS Vacancies: There have been three new judicial vacancies since the December 2019 report. There are 75 vacancies out of 870…
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No Article III federal judges confirmed in January; Trump has appointed second-most through third year of a presidency
Donald Trump appointed and the Senate confirmed 187 Article III federal judges through February 1, 2020, his fourth year in office. This is the second-most Article III judicial appointments through this point in a presidency of all presidents dating back to Theodore Roosevelt. Only Jimmy Carter (197) had more. The average number of federal judges…
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Justice Neil Gorsuch argues against nationwide injunctions
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, joined by Justice Clarence Thomas, wrote a concurring opinion to a recent case arguing that lower courts often abuse their judicial powers when they issue nationwide injunctions. Gorsuch ended his opinion saying he hoped that the U.S. Supreme Court would resolve questions about the rise of nationwide injunctions. The U.S.…
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Washington Supreme Court Justice Wiggins to retire, governor to select replacement
Washington Supreme Court Justice Charles K. Wiggins is retiring at the end of March 2020. In a prepared statement, Wiggins said he wished to spend more time with his wife, Nancy, and his family. Wiggins was elected to the state supreme court in 2010 and re-elected in 2016. He was previously a Division 2 judge…
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Univ. of Washington employee sues SEIU over membership opt-out provisions
On Jan. 20, an employee of the University of Washington filed a class-action lawsuit in U.S. District Court, alleging that her union, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 925, had unconstitutionally barred her and other employees from opting out of union membership. Who are the parties to the suit? The lead plaintiff is Charlene Wagner, a…
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10th Circuit hears oral argument in case challenging ATF bump stock ban
The United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit on January 22 heard oral argument in Aposhian v. Barr, a case claiming that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) violated Article I of the U.S. Constitution when they issued a 2018 rule redefining bump…
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U.S. Supreme Court accepts three new cases for October 2019-2020 term
On January 17, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear three new cases during its October 2019-2020 term: Ford Motor Company v. Montana Eighth Judicial District Court (consolidated with Ford Motor Company v. Bandemer), Chiafalo v. Washington (consolidated with Colorado Department of State v. Baca), and Little Sisters of the Poor Saints Peter and Paul…
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FTC faces due process challenge to adjudication, administrative law judges
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on January 3 became the latest federal agency to face a constitutional challenge to its adjudication procedures, including the role of administrative law judges (ALJs). Axon Enterprises Inc. filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona arguing that the FTC’s adjudication procedures vest the…
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Lawsuit claims new SNAP work requirements are unlawful
A group of states, the District of Columbia, and New York City filed a lawsuit on January 16 against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The lawsuit argues that a December 2019 rule violated federal law and arbitrarily reversed decades of policies governing when states…