- Presidential Immunity for Trump (Case: Trump v. United States):
- Issue: Whether a former president has sweeping immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts allegedly carried out while serving in the White House.
- Stakes: The decision will impact special counsel Jack Smith’s Jan. 6 criminal case against Trump in Washington, D.C., where the former president faces election obstruction charges related to his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. It will also affect two other criminal cases against Trump—one federal case involving mishandling of classified documents and another in Georgia stemming from his election result challenges.
- Obstruction Charges for Jan. 6 Defendants (Case: Fischer v. United States):
- Issue: Whether U.S. prosecutors can use a federal law to charge hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants for obstructing or impeding an official proceeding (Congress’s electoral vote certification on Jan. 6, 2021).
- Stakes: If the court rules in favor of the defendants, hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants already convicted under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act would need to be resentenced. However, most Jan. 6 defendants are also facing charges for other crimes, so the impact may not be complete
- Religious Freedom and Foster Care (Case: Fulton v. City of Philadelphia):
- Issue: Whether a Catholic social services agency can refuse to work with same-sex couples in foster care placements based on religious objections.
- Stakes: The decision could impact religious freedom rights and anti-discrimination laws, potentially affecting similar cases nationwide.
- Affordable Care Act (Case: California v. Texas):
- Issue: Whether the individual mandate provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional, and if so, whether the entire ACA should be invalidated.
- Stakes: Millions of Americans’ access to healthcare hangs in the balance, as well as protections for pre-existing conditions and Medicaid expansion.
- Voting Rights (Case: Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee):
- Issue: Whether Arizona’s voting restrictions disproportionately affect minority voters and violate the Voting Rights Act.
- Stakes: The ruling could impact voting laws in other states and shape the future of voting rights protections.
- Student Speech Rights (Case: Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L.):
- Issue: Whether a public school can discipline a student for off-campus speech (in this case, a Snapchat post) that occurs outside of school hours.
- Stakes: The ruling could impact students’ free speech rights and the authority of schools to regulate students’ online behavior.
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