In a 6-3 decision representing the Trump administration’s first major Supreme Court defeat in months, the Court blocks President Trump’s attempt to deploy federalized National Guard troops to Chicago without gubernatorial consent. The ruling turns on a critical statutory interpretation: …
U.S. Supreme CourtDonald TrumpJohn RobertsBrett KavanaughAmy Coney Barrett+8 moresupreme-courtnational-guardinsurrection-actexecutive-powerconstitutional-limits+3 more
U.S. Supreme Court allowed Virginia to purge over 1,600 voters within federally protected 90-day “quiet period” before 2024 election in 6-3 emergency decision, overturning lower court rulings in Beals v. Virginia Coalition for Immigrant Rights. Governor Glenn Youngkin’s Executive …
U.S. Supreme CourtGlenn Youngkin (Governor)Virginia Coalition for Immigrant Rightsvoter-purgesupreme-courtnvra-violationnaturalized-citizensvoter-suppression+2 more
On June 27, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked Purdue Pharma’s $6 billion bankruptcy settlement that would have granted the Sackler family—who extracted over $10 billion from Purdue while the company fueled the opioid epidemic—broad immunity from all current and future civil lawsuits. The …
U.S. Supreme CourtSackler FamilyPurdue PharmaDepartment of Justiceopioid-crisispharmaceutical-industrycorruptionregulatory-captureaccountability-failure+1 more
Supreme Court rejected dangerous “independent state legislature” theory in Moore v. Harper with 6-3 decision, preserving state courts’ ability to review federal election laws under state constitutions. Theory would have given state legislatures unchecked power over federal …
U.S. Supreme CourtNorth Carolina LegislatureDemocracy advocatesindependent-state-legislaturesupreme-courtelection-lawconstitutional-lawchecks-and-balances+1 more
Twenty Republican state attorneys general and governors, led by Texas, filed Texas v. Azar (later California v. Texas) in federal district court, arguing that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act’s zeroing of the individual mandate penalty rendered the entire Affordable Care Act unconstitutional. The …
Texas Attorney General Ken PaxtonJudge Reed O'Connor20 Republican State Attorneys GeneralCalifornia Attorney General Xavier BecerraU.S. Supreme Court+1 morehealthcareaca-sabotagelegal-challengesrepublican-attorneys-generalsupreme-court+2 more
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in King v. Burwell that premium tax credits are available to qualifying individuals in all states, rejecting a challenge that would have eliminated subsidies for millions in the 34 states using the federal healthcare exchange (HealthCare.gov). The lawsuit, filed by …
U.S. Supreme CourtChief Justice John RobertsJustice Antonin ScaliaKing (Plaintiff)Sylvia Burwell (HHS Secretary)healthcareaca-sabotagesupreme-courtsubsidieslegal-challenges+1 more
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius that the Affordable Care Act’s mandatory Medicaid expansion was unconstitutionally coercive, making it optional for states. While Chief Justice John Roberts upheld the individual mandate as a valid …
U.S. Supreme CourtChief Justice John RobertsNational Federation of Independent BusinessRepublican GovernorsRepublican State Attorneys Generalhealthcareaca-sabotagesupreme-courtmedicaidpartisan-obstruction+2 more
Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship pours over $3 million into West Virginia’s 2004 judicial election to elect Brent Benjamin to the state Supreme Court of Appeals, successfully defeating incumbent justice Warren McGraw. Blankenship’s spending—equivalent to “a dollar for every West …
Don BlankenshipBrent BenjaminHugh CapertonMassey Energy CompanyWest Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals+1 morejudicial-corruptioncampaign-financeregulatory-capturecoal-industrypolitical-influence+1 more
On March 24, 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil tanker ran aground in Prince William Sound, Alaska, spilling 11 million gallons of crude oil and devastating 1,300 miles of coastline. Beyond the immediate environmental catastrophe, Exxon’s response established a template for corporate liability evasion …
The Supreme Court rules 5-3 in Communications Workers of America v. Beck that workers covered by union contracts can refuse to pay the portion of dues used for political activities, limiting their payments to collective bargaining costs only. The ruling, based on Taft-Hartley’s Section …
U.S. Supreme CourtCommunications Workers of AmericaHarry BeckNational Right to Work Legal Defense Foundationlaborsupreme-courtunion-duesright-to-workunion-busting+1 more
The U.S. Supreme Court decides Continental Television, Inc. v. GTE Sylvania, Inc., marking the first significant victory for Chicago School antitrust theory at the Supreme Court and signaling the beginning of judicial embrace of corporate-friendly antitrust doctrine. The decision reflects decades of …
U.S. Supreme CourtAaron DirectorChicago School of Economicsantitrust-abandonmentchicago-schooljudicial-capturecorporate-poweraaron-director
The Supreme Court rules in Hills v. Gautreaux that metropolitan-wide remedies are permissible for housing discrimination, distinguishing the case from its Milliken v. Bradley school desegregation decision that limited remedies to municipal boundaries. Justice Potter Stewart’s opinion finds …
U.S. Supreme CourtJustice Potter StewartU.S. Department of Housing and Urban DevelopmentChicago Housing AuthorityLeadership Council for Metropolitan Open Communitiesinstitutional-captureracial-oppressionhousing-policylegal-resistance
On July 25, 1974, the Supreme Court issued its 5-4 ruling in Milliken v. Bradley, effectively ending meaningful school desegregation efforts across metropolitan America by prohibiting cross-district busing remedies to address urban-suburban segregation. The decision exempted wealthy white suburbs …
Chief Justice Warren BurgerJustice Thurgood MarshallU.S. Supreme CourtNAACP Legal Defense FundDetroit Public Schoolseducationsupreme-courtsegregationhousing-policyjudicial-capture+2 more
On March 21, 1973, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez that the Texas school finance system—which relied on local property taxes and created vast spending disparities between wealthy and poor districts—did not violate the Equal Protection Clause. The …
Justice Lewis PowellJustice Thurgood MarshallDemetrio RodriguezMexican American Legal Defense and Educational FundU.S. Supreme Courteducationsupreme-courtfunding-inequalitycivil-rightsproperty-tax+1 more
The U.S. Supreme Court decides Roe v. Wade, establishing constitutional right to abortion and instantly creating a rallying point for grassroots anti-feminist and anti-abortion organizing that will transform American politics and provide the social issue dimension needed to fuse economic …
U.S. Supreme CourtNellie Grayroe-v-wadeabortionconservative-mobilizationreligious-rightsocial-issues
The Supreme Court decides 6-3 in New York Times Co. v. United States that the Nixon administration cannot prevent newspapers from publishing the Pentagon Papers, marking the first time in American history a publication was temporarily halted due to national security concerns. A federal judge in New …
U.S. Supreme CourtNew York TimesWashington PostDaniel EllsbergNixon Administration+1 morepress-freedomgovernment-deceptionconstitutional-lawwhistleblowinginstitutional-corruption
The Supreme Court issues a 7-2 decision in Jones v. Alfred H. Mayer Co., holding that Congress can regulate private property sales to prevent racial discrimination under the Thirteenth Amendment’s power to eliminate “badges and incidents of slavery.” The case centers on Joseph Lee …
U.S. Supreme CourtJoseph Lee JonesAlfred H. Mayer Companyinstitutional-captureracial-oppressionhousing-policylegal-resistance
The U.S. Supreme Court rules 5-4 in Miranda v. Arizona that law enforcement must warn suspects of their constitutional rights before custodial interrogation, or else statements cannot be used as evidence at trial. The decision requires police to inform suspects of: (1) the right to remain silent; …
U.S. Supreme CourtChief Justice Earl WarrenRichard NixonLaw enforcement organizationslaw-enforcementcivil-libertiesinstitutional-resistanceconservative-backlashpolice-state
On June 17, 1957, the Supreme Court issued three decisions that significantly limited McCarthyist overreach: Yates v. United States, Watkins v. United States, and Service v. Dulles. Known as “Red Monday” to conservative critics, these rulings began the judicial rollback of the security …
Earl WarrenU.S. Supreme CourtOleta O'Connor YatesCommunist Party USADepartment of Justicecivil-libertiesjudicialfirst-amendmentmccarthyismred-scare+1 more
On November 13, 1956, the United States Supreme Court affirmed the district court ruling in Browder v. Gayle, declaring Montgomery, Alabama’s bus segregation laws unconstitutional. The decision marked the triumphant conclusion of the 381-day Montgomery Bus Boycott and established Martin Luther …
Martin Luther King Jr.Rosa ParksE.D. NixonJo Ann RobinsonMontgomery Improvement Association+2 morecivil-rightssegregationjudicialnonviolent-resistancedemocratic-breakthrough
On May 31, 1955, one year after declaring school segregation unconstitutional in Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court issued Brown II, its implementation ruling. Rather than setting firm deadlines or providing specific remedies, the Court ordered desegregation proceed “with all …
Earl WarrenU.S. Supreme CourtNAACP Legal Defense FundThurgood MarshallSouthern state governmentscivil-rightssegregationjudicialdemocratic-erosionmassive-resistance
On May 17, 1954, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Earl Warren delivered the unanimous ruling in the landmark civil rights case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. The Court declared that racial segregation in public schools violated the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, …
On June 4, 1951, the United States Supreme Court ruled 6-2 in Dennis v. United States, upholding the convictions of eleven Communist Party leaders under the Smith Act of 1940. The decision effectively criminalized political advocacy, allowing prosecution for teaching or advocating revolutionary …
Fred VinsonU.S. Supreme CourtEugene DennisCommunist Party USADepartment of Justicemccarthyismcivil-libertiesjudicialfirst-amendmentred-scare+1 more
The Supreme Court issues a unanimous 6-0 decision in Shelley v. Kraemer, holding that racially restrictive housing covenants cannot be judicially enforced without violating the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The case arises when Louis Kraemer sues to prevent the Shelley family, …
U.S. Supreme CourtChief Justice Fred VinsonNAACP Legal Defense Fundinstitutional-captureracial-oppressionhousing-policylegal-resistance
The Supreme Court rules 8-1 in Buck v. Bell to uphold Virginia’s compulsory sterilization law, providing constitutional blessing for the eugenics movement’s campaign to sterilize those deemed “unfit.” Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes writes for the majority that the state may …
Oliver Wendell HolmesCarrie BuckHarry LaughlinU.S. Supreme CourtEugenics Record Officeeugenicsjudicial-capturecivil-libertiessupreme-courtinstitutional-racism
The Supreme Court rules that the Journeymen Stone Cutters Association of North America violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by declaring stone from Bedford Cut Stone Company and 23 other Indiana limestone producers “unfair” and prohibiting its 5,000 members from working on buildings using …
George SutherlandU.S. Supreme CourtJourneymen Stone Cutters AssociationBedford Cut Stone Companylabor-suppressionjudicial-captureanti-unionantitrust
The Supreme Court rules 7-2 in Gitlow v. New York to uphold Benjamin Gitlow’s conviction under New York’s Criminal Anarchy Act for publishing “The Left Wing Manifesto,” a socialist pamphlet advocating revolutionary mass action. Justice Edward Sanford’s majority opinion …
Edward SanfordBenjamin GitlowU.S. Supreme CourtOliver Wendell Holmescivil-libertiesfirst-amendmentred-scaresupreme-courtlabor-suppression
The Supreme Court unanimously reverses its 1922 Coronado decision, ruling that the United Mine Workers local union violated the Sherman Antitrust Act by conspiring to restrain interstate commerce in coal. After the Court’s first ruling favored the union by finding insufficient evidence of …
William Howard TaftU.S. Supreme CourtUnited Mine Workers of AmericaCoronado Coal Companylabor-suppressionjudicial-captureanti-unionantitrust
The Supreme Court rules 5-3 in Adkins v. Children’s Hospital that a 1918 federal law establishing a minimum wage board for women and minors in the District of Columbia violates the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of “liberty of contract.” Justice George Sutherland, writing for …
George SutherlandU.S. Supreme CourtChildren's HospitalWillie Lyonsjudicial-capturelabor-suppressionsupreme-courtlochner-era
The Supreme Court rules in United Mine Workers v. Coronado Coal Co. that unincorporated labor unions can be sued in federal court as legal entities, establishing a precedent that exposes unions to potentially devastating civil liability. The case arises from Arkansas’s Sebastian County Union …
William Howard TaftU.S. Supreme CourtUnited Mine Workers of AmericaCoronado Coal Companylabor-suppressionjudicial-captureanti-unionantitrust
The Supreme Court rules 8-1 in Bailey v. Drexel Furniture Co. (the Child Labor Tax Case) that the Revenue Act of 1919, which imposed a 10 percent excise tax on profits of companies employing children under age 14, violates the Tenth Amendment. Chief Justice William Howard Taft declares the tax …
William Howard TaftU.S. Supreme CourtU.S. CongressDrexel Furniture Companyjudicial-capturelabor-suppressioncorporate-powersupreme-courtchild-labor
The Supreme Court rules 5-4 in Truax v. Corrigan that an Arizona law prohibiting state courts from issuing injunctions against peaceful labor picketing violates the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Chief Justice William Howard Taft, writing for the majority, holds that the Arizona …
William Howard TaftU.S. Supreme CourtArizona State Legislaturelabor-suppressionjudicial-captureanti-unionsupreme-court
The Supreme Court rules 6-3 in Duplex Printing Press Co. v. Deering that the Clayton Act’s supposed protections for labor organizing do not prevent federal courts from enjoining union boycotts. Justice Mahlon Pitney holds that Section 20 of the Clayton Act, which labor had celebrated in 1914 …
Mahlon PitneyU.S. Supreme CourtInternational Association of MachinistsDuplex Printing Press Companylabor-suppressionjudicial-captureantitrustsupreme-courtclayton-act
The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 4-3 decision written by Justice Joseph McKenna, dismissed the government’s antitrust case against U.S. Steel Corporation, the world’s first billion-dollar company created through J.P. Morgan’s 1901 merger. The Court ruled: “We must adhere to the …
U.S. Supreme CourtJustice Joseph McKennaJustice DayU.S. Steel CorporationElbert Henry Garyantitrustrule-of-reasoncorporate-powersupreme-courtenforcement-abandonment+1 more
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Keating-Owen Child Labor Act of 1916 on June 3, 1918, in Hammer v. Dagenhart, ruling 5-4 that the federal law exceeded federal authority and represented an unwarranted encroachment on state powers to determine local labor conditions. Justice William R. …
U.S. Supreme CourtJustice William R. DayJustice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.supreme-courtchild-laborlabor-rightsjudicial-captureprogressive-era
The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 9-0 unanimous decision applying the new “rule of reason” doctrine, ruled that the American Tobacco Company violated the Sherman Antitrust Act and ordered the tobacco trust dissolved. Founded in 1890 by James Duke, American Tobacco controlled nearly 90% of …
U.S. Supreme CourtChief Justice Edward WhiteAmerican Tobacco CompanyJames Dukeantitrustcorporate-powersupreme-courtmonopolyrule-of-reason+1 more
The Supreme Court’s order to break Standard Oil into 34 separate companies produced a profound paradox: the breakup made John D. Rockefeller vastly richer while ultimately failing to prevent reconsolidation. Shareholders in Standard Oil received proportional stakes in each successor …
John D. RockefellerStandard Oil CompanyU.S. Supreme Courtantitrustcorporate-powerwealth-concentrationmonopolyenforcement-limitations
The U.S. Supreme Court rules unanimously 9-0 in Loewe v. Lawlor (the “Danbury Hatters’ Case”) that the Sherman Antitrust Act applies to labor unions and that individual union members can be held personally liable for damages caused by union boycotts. Chief Justice Melville W. …
U.S. Supreme CourtChief Justice Melville W. FullerUnited Hatters of North AmericaD.E. Loewe & CompanyMartin Lawlor+1 morelabor-suppressiongilded-agesupreme-courtantitrust-misusejudicial-capture+1 more
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision in Lochner v. New York on April 17, 1905, striking down a New York law that limited bakery workers to a 60-hour work week as unconstitutional. Justice Rufus Peckham’s majority opinion held that the law violated the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due …
U.S. Supreme CourtJustice Rufus PeckhamJustice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.Justice John HarlanJoseph Lochnersupreme-courtlabor-rightscorporate-powerjudicial-captureprogressive-era+1 more
On January 30, 1905, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Swift & Co. v. United States that the Commerce Clause allowed the federal government to regulate monopolies that have a direct effect on interstate commerce, dealing a major blow to the “Beef Trust” cartel. The case followed …
U.S. Supreme CourtSwift & CompanyArmour & CompanyTheodore RooseveltAttorney General Philander Knoxantitrustcorporate-powersupreme-courtregulatory-enforcementprogressive-era
On March 14, 1904, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the Northern Securities Company violated the Sherman Antitrust Act and ordered the railroad holding company dissolved. The decision affirmed the April 9, 1903 federal circuit court ruling against the company formed by J.P. Morgan, James J. …
U.S. Supreme CourtTheodore RooseveltJ.P. MorganJames J. HillEdward H. Harriman+1 moreantitrustcorporate-powerregulatory-enforcementsupreme-courtprogressive-era
The U.S. Supreme Court issues a unanimous 9-0 decision in In re Debs, upholding the federal government’s use of injunctions to suppress labor strikes and affirming Eugene V. Debs’s contempt of court conviction for continuing the 1894 Pullman Strike in violation of a federal court order. …
U.S. Supreme CourtJustice David Josiah BrewerEugene V. DebsFederal judiciaryCorporate interestslabor-suppressiongilded-agejudicial-captureinjunctionsupreme-court+1 more
On January 21, 1895, the U.S. Supreme Court decided United States v. E.C. Knight Co. (156 U.S. 1) by a vote of 8-1, effectively gutting the Sherman Antitrust Act just five years after its passage. The case arose when the American Sugar Refining Company (the “Sugar Trust”) acquired four …
The Supreme Court again explicitly affirmed corporate personhood, holding that “It is again decided that private corporations are persons within the meaning of [the Fourteenth] Amendment.” The case involved South Carolina’s requirement that railroads pay the salaries and expenses …
U.S. Supreme CourtCharlotte, Columbia and Augusta Railroad CompanySouth Carolina LegislatureState Railroad Commissioncorporate-personhoodsupreme-courtfourteenth-amendmentrailroad-regulationdue-process
The Supreme Court formally declared corporate personhood as settled constitutional law, with Justice Stephen Field writing that “Corporations are persons within the meaning of the clauses in the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution concerning the deprivation of property, and concerning the …
U.S. Supreme CourtJustice Stephen FieldMinneapolis & St. Louis Railway Companycorporate-personhoodsupreme-courtfourteenth-amendmentdue-processequal-protection+1 more
In an 8-0 decision authored by Justice Stephen Field, the U.S. Supreme Court explicitly affirmed corporate personhood under the Fourteenth Amendment, holding that “Under the designation of ‘person’ there is no doubt that a private corporation is included. Such corporations are …
U.S. Supreme CourtJustice Stephen FieldPembina Consolidated Silver Mining and Milling CompanyCommonwealth of Pennsylvaniacorporate-personhoodsupreme-courtfourteenth-amendmentdue-processcorporate-rights
On October 25, 1886, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific Railway Co. v. Illinois (118 U.S. 557) in a 6-3 ruling that severely limited states’ power to regulate interstate commerce, effectively shielding railroad monopolies from state-level oversight. The case arose …
U.S. Supreme CourtWabash RailroadIllinois LegislatureInterstate Commerceregulatory-erosionsupreme-courtcorporate-powerinstitutional-capturestates-rights
In what would become one of the most consequential non-rulings in American legal history, a court reporter’s headnote to Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad established the foundation for corporate personhood without the Supreme Court ever deciding the issue. Before oral arguments, …
U.S. Supreme CourtChief Justice Morrison WaiteJ.C. Bancroft Davis (Court Reporter)Southern Pacific RailroadSanta Clara County+1 morecorporate-personhoodsupreme-courtfourteenth-amendmentconstitutional-lawgilded-age+3 more
The Supreme Court ruled in the Railroad Commission Cases that states possess constitutional authority to set railroad transportation rates through regulatory commissions, upholding Mississippi’s 1884 statute establishing rate-setting power. Filed the same year as the Santa Clara headnote, this …
U.S. Supreme CourtMississippi LegislatureFarmers' Loan & Trust CompanyMobile & Ohio Railroad CompanyMississippi Railroad Commissioncorporate-regulationsupreme-courtrailroad-regulationstate-police-powerproperty-rights+1 more
The Supreme Court declares the Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutional in an 8-1 decision, ruling that the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments do not empower Congress to outlaw racial discrimination by private individuals—thereby legitimizing the Jim Crow system of racial segregation that will …
U.S. Supreme CourtJoseph P. BradleyJohn Marshall Harlanjudicial-capturecivil-rights-destructionreconstruction-sabotageinstitutional-racismwhite-supremacy