Stanford apologizes after conservative federal appeals judge is heckled during Federalist Society talk

U.S. Circuit Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan has received an apology after protesters he described as “juvenile idiots” interrupted his March 9 speech with the Federalist Society at Stanford Law School.

Mar 13, 2023 11:32 AM CDT

Supreme Court accepts challenge to funding of consumer bureau that could put 12 years of CFPB actions at risk

Feb 27, 2023 10:37 AM CST

7 judges on 5th Circuit question ‘perpetual funding’ of government programs; is Social Security at risk?

Seven judges on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at New Orleans have embraced the view that “perpetual funding” of government agencies or programs violates the Constitution’s appropriations clause.

Feb 13, 2023 3:23 PM CST

5th Circuit looks to history and strikes down law banning gun possession by subjects of civil protective orders

A federal appeals court has struck down a ban on gun possession by people subject to domestic-violence restraining orders, citing the historical approach required by the U.S. Supreme Court’s latest Second Amendment precedent.

Feb 3, 2023 1:31 PM CST

Federal appeals court strikes down ATF rule banning rapid-fire bump stocks

Updated: The en banc 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at New Orleans has struck down a Trump administration ban on bump stocks, which are used to accelerate gunfire on semi-automatic weapons.

Jan 9, 2023 9:55 AM CST

Prisoner who can’t show ‘factual innocence’ isn’t entitled to habeas relief, 5th Circuit says

A Mississippi inmate’s habeas appeal is doomed because of U.S. Supreme Court decisions remarking that federal courts have discretion to deny relief as “law and justice require,” a federal appeals court ruled last month.

Jan 5, 2023 8:54 AM CST

Western District of Louisiana is preferred venue for conservative states challenging Biden policies

Republican-led states banding together to challenge Biden administration policies are filing their cases in the Western District of Louisiana, where they can “virtually guarantee” that a GOP-appointed judge will be hearing their cases, according to an exclusive article by Bloomberg Law.

Dec 22, 2022 10:17 AM CST

Bryan Garner’s 2022 legal writing tips

This year, Bryan Garner gave us a new game for word lovers, a hypothesis on hyphens and four principles of legal writing that he learned as a clerk in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at New Orleans. Here's the full wrap-up of 2022 columns by the Black's Law Dictionary's editor-in-chief.

Dec 22, 2022 8:34 AM CST

‘Major questions’ doctrine applies to presidential authority, 5th Circuit says in federal contractor vaccine case

President Joe Biden didn’t have authority under the Procurement Act of 1949 to require federal contractors to mandate COVID-19 vaccines for their employees, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Dec 21, 2022 8:33 AM CST

Judge’s failure to recuse because of stock ownership doesn’t require vacating decision, 5th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has refused to disturb a judge’s ruling in favor of Walmart, despite her ownership of company stock.

Dec 12, 2022 10:49 AM CST

2 federal appeals judges boycotting Yale Law clerks see progress in campus tolerance for conservative views

Two conservative federal appeals judges who previously announced plans to boycott Yale Law School clerks said they are seeing progress in tolerance for differing viewpoints at a university event Wednesday.

Dec 2, 2022 9:15 AM CST

Supreme Court should consider right to earn a living, 5th Circuit judge says in COVID-19 shutdown case

A conservative federal appeals judge suggested in a concurrence this week that the U.S. Supreme Court should consider whether the right to earn a living is a fundamental, unenumerated constitutional right.

Nov 10, 2022 1:22 PM CST

A sign of rapprochement? Federal appeals judges boycotting Yale Law will speak at school

Two conservative federal appeals judges who are boycotting Yale Law School graduates have offered to discuss free speech issues in a panel discussion at the school.

Oct 24, 2022 3:53 PM CDT

Funding structure for consumer agency violates separation of powers, 5th Circuit says

A federal appeals court has ruled that the funding structure for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is unconstitutional because it is funded by the Federal Reserve System, rather than Congress.

Oct 21, 2022 8:59 AM CDT

Yale Law School touts dedication to a ‘vibrant intellectual environment’ after complaints of cancel culture

Yale Law School has said it has taken several concrete steps to reaffirm its commitment to free speech in a message to alumni posted after critics expressed concern about a cancel culture environment.

Oct 14, 2022 9:42 AM CDT