Federal Judiciary

Friday round-up

By Akin Gump Supreme Court Practice Group

The Washington Independent recounts Wednesday’s House Judiciary Committee hearing on the effects of Ashcroft v. Iqbal, decided last Term, and Bell Atlantic v. Twombly, decided in 2007.  The hearing paralleled a Senate committee hearing on the same topic on December 2.  The American Constitution Society?s ACSblog also alerts readers that ACS is holding its own event on the subject in January.

In the New York Times, Linda Greenhouse reflects on what she sees as the ?aggressive move? taken by the Court to hear new oral argument in the campaign finance case Citizens United v. FEC and surmises that the Court ? to the surprise of many ? declined to decide the case before the holiday recess because of a ?prolonged internal struggle over how far to go.?

At the Cato @ Liberty blog, Ilya Shapiro gives a brief overview of the amicus brief the Cato Institute filed in the Skilling case, arguing that the ?honest services fraud? statute is unconstitutionally vague.

Briefly, Bloomberg adds its own commentary on the Court?s refusal to hear the Chrysler bankruptcy petition, Indiana State Police Pension Trust v. Chrysler LLC.

SCOTUSblog?s own Lyle Denniston comments that the new arrangement to move some Guantanamo Bay prisoners to an Illinois prison may spike the importance of Kiyemba v. Obama, a case brought by a detainee that is to be argued later this Term.

Finally, the L.A. Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, Law.com, and the Ninth Circuit press office announce that the Ninth Circuit is allowing video cameras in its courtroom ? a course of action long debated for the Supreme Court.

Full post as published by SCOTUSBLOG on December 18, 2009 (boomark / email).