Today in Supreme Court History: April 29

Niz-Chavez v. Garland, 593 U.S. 155 (decided April 29, 2021): “notice to appear” served on people subject to deportation (and which stops the time accrued in this country) must contain all the information the person needs on a single form, not on various forms sent at various times (opinion is another example of Gorsuch’s clear and informal writing style)

Thacker v. Tennessee Valley Authority, 587 U.S. 218 (decided April 29, 2019): The TVA, owned by the federal government, by statute can sue and be sued, but retains some governmental immunity.  Here the Court, construing TVA statute, holds that usual immunity from liability under Federal Tort Claims Act for “discretionary functions” (decisions by officials, as opposed to negligence in how those decisions are carried out) does not apply to the TVA, and allows suit for damages due to failure to warn of downed power line. (Sounds like negligence anyway!)

Williams-Yulee v. Florida Bar, 575 U.S. 433 (decided April 29, 2015): First Amendment not violated by state rule prohibiting candidates for judicial office from personally soliciting funds for their campaign; integrity of the judiciary is a “compelling state interest”; 5 - 4 decision

McBurney v. Young, 569 U.S. 221 (decided April 29, 2013): Virginia allows only its own citizens to request records under its Freedom of Information Act.  This does not violate the Dormant Commerce Clause or the Privileges and Immunities Clause.  (One plaintiff, from Rhode Island, was trying to find out why a court had waited so long to issue a decision on child support he was retroactively owed; another, from California, was trying to get real estate tax records for a client.)

Kansas v. Ventris, 556 U.S. 586 (decided April 29, 2009): confession obtained in violation of Miranda (statement to jailhouse informant) can be used to impeach if defendant decides to testify (this is why I didn’t go into criminal law: it’s great to free the innocent, but you make your living by freeing the guilty)

Roell v. Withrow, 538 U.S. 580 (decided April 29, 2003): magistrate had authority to issue findings in §1983 case against prison doctors; though no explicit consent had been given, plaintiff had acquiesced in magistrate managing case and acting as judge at trial (my practice in federal court is to always consent; you don’t want to piss off the judge by forcing him to manage and then try your case, particularly if it’s a state law diversity case -- which is too mundane for those thinkers, who want to deal only with Great Constitutional Issues)

McLaughlin v. United States, 476 U.S. 16 (decided April 29, 1986): handgun brandished during bank robbery is “dangerous weapon” under statute even though unloaded

EEOC v. Federal Labor Relations Authority, 476 U.S. 19 (decided April 29, 1986): Here we have one federal agency suing another, the EEOC seeking review of a FLRA ruling requiring the EEOC to accede to its union’s request for restrictions on contracting out work.  The Court holds that the EEOC can’t raise arguments not made before the FLRA.  Which is the plain language of 5 U.S.C. §7123(c).

Procunier v. Martinez, 416 U.S. 396 (decided April 29, 1974): striking down California prison rules allowing censorship of mail without procedural safeguards and prohibiting interviews with law students and paralegals (overruled as to mail issue by Thornburgh v. Abbott, 1989)

Ball v. James, 451 U.S. 355 (decided April 29, 1981): despite one-person, one-vote rule, can restrict voting for directors of agricultural improvement district to landowners, weighting votes by acreage owned

Advocate Christ Medical Center v. Kennedy, 605 U.S. --- (decided April 29, 2025): number of patients in hospital enrolled in SSI program counts towards Medicare reimbursement rate only if they are actually receiving cash benefits (which SSI evaluates month by month) during that month; Barrett’s opinion efficiently parses the complicated formulas, and (along with Jackson’s dissent) actually got me interested