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Sonia Sotomayor

Nov 13, 2013

US Supreme Court beefs up standard for ineffective assistance appeals

Federal courts taking up ineffective assistance-based appeals involving plea bargains must apply a “doubly deferential” standard of review that gives significant weight to state court determinations, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled, reversing a 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in Burt v. Titlow, No. 12-414.

Aug 9, 2013

Cellphone search cases move closer to US Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court may soon addresses an issue it has carefully avoided until now: Just how much privacy do Americans enjoy in the information contained within and emanating from their cellphones?

Jun 24, 2013

Court makes it harder to sue businesses

A sharply divided Supreme Court on Monday made it more difficult for Americans to sue businesses for discrimination and retaliation, leading a judge to call for Congress to overturn the court's actions.

Jun 11, 2013

Harsher sentencing guidelines violate Ex Post Facto Clause

Sentencing a criminal defendant under later guidelines that provide for a higher sentence than those in effect at the time the crimes were committed violates the Ex Post Facto Clause, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in a 5-4 decision.

Jun 10, 2013

Court: Judges can’t use new guidelines on old case

The U.S. Supreme Court says judges can't use newer sentencing guidelines on an old case.

Jun 6, 2013

Analysis: Employees must keep beneficiary designations updated

It’s fair to assume Warren Hillman never intended that the proceeds of his federal employee life insurance policy would go to his ex-wife when he died unexpectedly in 2008.

Jun 3, 2013

US high court: Ex, not current wife, keeps life insurance proceeds

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a divorced Virginia woman could not be forced to surrender the proceeds of a federal employee life insurance policy that she received as her ex-husband’s named beneficiary.

Apr 29, 2013

US Supreme Court finds defendant’s retro plea a tough sell

Can a common practice in criminal defense trigger constitutional protections when it’s suddenly changed?

Apr 18, 2013

Shushing Sotomayor

Emotions - and tensions - ran high at the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday in a case asking whether a federal tribal law allows a biological father to regain custody of a child who had been legally adopted by a couple under state law.

Apr 16, 2013

Court struggles with question of human gene patentability

Drawing a legal line to determine when human genetic material ceases to be a creation of nature and instead becomes a patentable product is not easy — even for the U.S. Supreme Court.

Mar 29, 2013

U.S. Supreme Court justices rule in closely-watched class action case

A consumer class action should not have been certified because the plaintiffs’ expert testimony failed to establish that the case was susceptible to awarding damages on a class-wide basis, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled 5-4.

Mar 7, 2013

Playin’ the name game: Justice Kennedy picks up honor

When it comes to getting something named for you before you are dead and buried, being on the Supreme Court isn't a bad choice.

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