Episode Details

OVERVIEW

Don't miss this action packed episode. In it, we cover three things:

1. News that the Supreme Court agreed to hear 4 new cases;
2. News that the Supreme Court will issue opinions
3. Stats, trends, and observations of last week's 4 opinions; and
4. Final thoughts on this week's oral arguments

NEW CERTIORARI GRANTS

Cases Added: Four new grants bring total to approximately 57 unique cases for the term

1. Geofence Warrants Case: Constitutional challenge to warrants allowing police access to cell phone user data by specific date, time, and location
2. Patent Infringement Case: Intellectual property dispute involving patent protection standards
3. Monsanto/Roundup Case: Product liability challenge over failure to warn about cancer dangers
4. Investment Fund Case: Securities litigation involving pleading standards for fund underperformance claims

Term Outlook: Current case count (57 unique cases) approaches last term's 62-63 cases, suggesting limited additional grants expected

JANUARY 20TH OPINIONS FORTHCOMING

Release Schedule: Supreme Court plans opinion release on Monday, January 20th Coverage Plan: Detailed opinion breakdowns scheduled for Thursday or Friday depending on volume Anticipation: Multiple pending cases await resolution from previous oral argument sessions

SCOTUS OPINION TRENDS & STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

Reversal Patterns: Current term mirrors historical 69% reversal rate

1. 3 reversals/vacates vs. 1 affirmance from first four decisions
2. Montana Supreme Court decision upheld; federal circuit courts overturned

Vote Distributions: Early decisions show typical voting patterns

1. 2 unanimous (9-0) decisions: Barrett v. United States, Case v. Montana
2. 1 decision 7-2, 1 decision 5-4
3. 3 criminal law cases, 1 standing/election case

Authorship Patterns: Different justices authored each majority opinion

1. Roberts, Sotomayor, Kagan, Jackson wrote majorities
2. Gorsuch most active: 2 concurrences, 1 dissent
3. Jackson 2nd most active: 1 majority, 1 dissent

Judicial Fracturing Analysis: Early emergence of fractured reasoning despite agreement on outcomes

1. Notable example: Bost v. Illinois where Barrett and Kagan joined conclusion but rejected reasoning
2. Barrett criticized majority's "bespoke standing rule for candidates"