Supreme Court

California Court Orders Return of 650,000 Seized Ballots

California Supreme Court unanimously ordered Sheriff Chad Bianco to return about 650,000 ballots, ruling his seizure from a 2025 special election unlawful.

Supreme Court Allows SAVE Voter Checks, With Limits

Federal lawsuits aiming to force Washington officials to hand over voter registration data were dismissed, adding to a string of defeats for the DOJ in accessing state voter rolls. Separately, the Trump administration faced court rulings dismissing challenges over using passport records and other federal data to verify citizenship for voting, amid broader legal battles over federal overreach in elections.

Tennessee Court Denies Pike Stay, Execution Set

The Tennessee Supreme Court declined to halt Christa Pike’s Sept. 30 execution, rejecting her challenge to the state’s lethal-injection protocol; her attorneys plan to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and continue seeking clemency. Separately, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights found violations involving Pike’s trial representation and prolonged death-row confinement, while other coverage recounts the murder case and the differing outcomes for her co-defendants.

Supreme Court Keeps Missouri’s 2022 Map for Midterms

Missouri’s 2026 midterms are engulfed in a protracted redistricting battle as courts clash over the GOP-drawn 2025 map that would reshape Kansas City and tilt most seats Conservative, with the state Supreme Court blocking its use while federal courts push to implement it. Ballots are already in circulation and election officials face a tight deadline as the dispute heads to the Supreme Court for a final ruling, leaving voters in limbo about which map will govern the election.

Supreme Court Rejects Surrogate’s Custody Appeal

The Supreme Court declined to intervene in a multi-state surrogacy dispute over a baby with a severe heart defect, letting a California court’s ruling that the genetic parents are the child’s legal guardians stand, while the surrogate sought involvement in the child’s medical decisions. Texas and California courts remain involved in determining the child’s care, with transfers and emergency orders reflecting the life-saving needs of the infant and ongoing legal battles between the surrogate and the genetic parents.

Supreme Court Weighs Missouri Congressional Map

Missouri's congressional map dispute has produced a constitutional crisis as courts clash over a 2025 gerrymandered map versus the 2022 map, affecting ballot timing and which districts will vote in November. The fight has drawn in multiple lawsuits, state and federal courts, and a referendum campaign, leaving officials uncertain about which map will govern election-day voting.

Wisconsin Supreme Court Declines Dugan License Suspension

Wisconsin Supreme Court denied summary suspension of Hannah Dugan's law license after her obstruction conviction; Ziegler dissented, confounded by the inaction.

Supreme Court to Hear Climate Nuisance Case Critics Warn Could Cost Trillions

Former AG Bill Barr warned that climate lawsuits against American energy companies could strengthen adversaries like China and Russia by targeting private firms while sovereign immunity protects state-owned producers; he argued that Boulder County’s Suncor case and similar suits threaten to shift production abroad and raise energy costs, with some filings reportedly seeking trillions in damages. Barr also contended that such state-law claims have national and global implications that the Constitution bars from being controlled by individual states, and warned that a single victory could cripple U.S. energy producers.

Courts Block Trump USPS Mail-Ballot Rules

Trump-appointed Judge Carl Nichols blocked USPS mail-ballot rules late Sunday, ruling the agency lacks statutory authority ahead of the November 3 midterms.

Alaska Surrogate Appeals Newborn Custody to Supreme Court

Surrogate McKenna West is appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court to challenge a California court’s recognition of the intended parents as legal guardians and a Texas court’s dismissal in a custody dispute over a baby born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, arguing she should retain authority over the child’s medical care. The case centers on who has the right to decide life-saving treatment—the surrogate or the intended parents—amid allegations of pressure to abort, with involvement from Texas authorities and ongoing legal battles across states.

Judge Blocks Loyalty Questions Across 70,000 Federal Jobs

A federal judge blocked the Trump administration from requiring federal job applicants to answer loyalty questions about President Donald Trump, ruling the practice likely violated free-speech rights and the merit-based, nonpartisan civil service. The injunction affects more than 70,000 postings, with unions arguing the questions politicized hiring, while the administration contends the questions were voluntary and not about loyalty.

Surrogate Seeks Supreme Court Help in Custody Fight

McKenna West, a surrogate who refused to terminate the pregnancy, has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in a custody and medical-care dispute over a four-week-old baby with hypoplastic left heart syndrome born in Dallas, challenging California court orders that recognize the intended parents as the child's legal guardians. West argues she must be allowed to advocate for the child’s life-saving treatment amid a multi-state dispute, with Texas authorities having intervened to ensure care, highlighting surrogacy and abortion policy gaps across states.

Brazil Supreme Court Cancels Sessions Over Justice Dispute

Brazil’s Supreme Court canceled consecutive sessions amid a widening Banco Master corruption scandal, with leaked text messages showing potential improper contact between Banco Master head Daniel Vorcaro and Justice Alexandre de Moraes, prompting Moraes to seek a probe and the court to decide on investigating Moraes. The turmoil, intensified by political graft allegations and looming elections, has fractured the bench as allies and opponents trade accusations regarding the judiciary’s integrity.

Supreme Court Weighs Trump Bid to Expand Voter Verification

The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to revive or modify the voter verification SAVE database as states review registration records, adding another major election-related case to the court’s docket. Separately, the administration’s push to enforce new federal mail-ballot rules faces legal hurdles with injunctions and Supreme Court review, raising questions about election integrity and potential disenfranchisement while states run upcoming elections.

Trump administration asks Supreme Court to reinstate mail ballot rules before midterms

Judge blocks Trump's second birthright citizenship order, citing Supreme Court ruling

Maine High Court Upholds Mother's Religious Restrictions

Maine’s top court upheld a custody order giving the father final say over whether his 13-year-old daughter can attend Calvary Chapel, finding that exposure to hostile messages caused harm to the child rather than a dispute with the mother’s Christianity. The decision, which keeps the dispute alive for a potential U.S. Supreme Court review, centers on balancing parental religious rights with the child’s well-being.

Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling lets White House ballroom project proceed for now

The Supreme Court cleared the way for Donald Trump to continue construction of the White House East Wing ballroom by ruling that the National Trust for Historic Preservation generally lacks standing to block the project, in a split decision that featured several varying opinions. The rulings, including a 5-4 and a 6-3 posture in related matters, leave significant legal questions unresolved while allowing the immediate work to resume under ongoing challenges in lower courts.

Citizenship voting group asks Supreme Court to save Michigan ballot bid

Michigan voters are at the center of a high-stakes fight over a citizen-proof ballot amendment, with Americans for Citizen Voting asking the U.S. Supreme Court for emergency relief after the state Board of Canvassers deadlocked on certifying signatures. The dispute touches ballot-access standards, signature validity reviews, and could influence voting rights and election integrity nationwide as its fate plays out in state and federal courts.

Supreme Court Allows East Wing Ballroom

North Farmington beat Birmingham Groves 14-13 in Week 1 at Wayne State, overcoming a strong Groves run game and late-game swings. A decisive 65-yard final run by Eli Cobb and a missed 33-second game-winning field goal sealed the Raiders’ victory.

Courts Narrow Trump Mail-In Order as USPS Rule Looms

The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, allowed President Trump's plan to restrict mail-in voting to move forward for the midterms, lifting lower-court injunctions but signaling that many provisions remain subject to future legal scrutiny. While the Court stressed that the action doesn’t ensure legality of implementing measures, it kept open the possibility of further challenges as states weigh how the changes would affect election administration and turnout.

California Supreme Court considers return of seized ballots

The California Supreme Court is weighing whether Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco must return about 650,000 ballots seized during the 2025 redistricting election, as voters and state officials challenge the sheriff’s authority and probe. Justices are considering the proper election-contest mechanisms and whether the attorney general can stop a sheriff-led investigation into the ballots.

Norway Appeals Supreme Court on Oilfield Permits

Norway's government has asked the Supreme Court to overturn lower-court rulings that invalidated development permits for the Breidablikk, Tyrving, and Yggdrasil oilfields, arguing that updated Scope 3 emissions assessments now satisfy legal requirements. Environmental groups Greenpeace Nordic and Nature og Ungdom contend the assessments ignored climate impacts from burning oil, while production continues at two fields and Tyrving is set to start later this year as the case proceeds.

SCOTUS Ruling on Standing; New USPS Challenges Emerge

The Postal Service has issued a 95-page final rule to tighten mail-in voting, requiring states to share voter data and barcode information and stipulating that ballots be delivered only if states comply with the new standards; the rule could take immediate effect if court injunctions are lifted. Courts have blocked the changes, with injunctions from California, Massachusetts, and Boston delaying implementation ahead of the midterm elections, while President Trump’s March executive order underpins the rule’s aims.