The Constitution’s structure should decide Suncor

Please note that SCOTUS Outside Opinions constitute the views of outside contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SCOTUSblog or its staff. On Oct. 5, First Monday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Suncor Energy (U.S.A.) Inc. v. County Commissioners of Boulder County. The case is controversial, as was […]

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The October sitting so far

The justices heard oral arguments this week in four cases – and denied review in hundreds of others – as the 2026-27 term officially got underway. Additionally, a dispute on broadcasting rates for political ads returned to the interim docket, where it joined a still-pending application on transgender inmates. At […]

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Court to weigh deference to U.S. Sentencing Commission’s interpretations of its guidelines

Before imposing a sentence on a federal criminal defendant, a district judge must apply the federal sentencing guidelines for the defendant’s offense and criminal history and take into account the sentencing range recommended by those guidelines, along with a host of other factors. In Beaird v. United States, which will […]

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A textbook 14th Amendment revolution

This is the second part in a series for SCOTUSblog recounting two decades of constitutional change through the five editions of our casebook, the first published in 2008 and the latest to be published this December. In 2005, the Supreme Court’s 14th Amendment jurisprudence seemed at equipoise. The equal protection […]

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The first relists of the 2026-27 term

The Relist Watch column examines cert petitions that the Supreme Court has “relisted” for its upcoming conference. A short explanation of relists is available here. Welcome back! The justices returned from their lazy, carefree days of summer recess to tackle the end-of-summer “long conference” on Sept. 28, where they worked […]

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