It is now summer. How do we know this? Sure, you could just go outside and feel the sun.* Or you could look at a calendar. But there is another way. You can count the number of decisions issued by the D.C. Circuit! Come summer, the Court starts issuing lots (and lots) of opinions. This […]
How many steps does Chevron really have? The Supreme Court says two (well, usually it says two; for a time it said one, but of late the Court has been saying two again). Two prominent law professors say Chevron only has one step; sure, they are wrong — 😉 — but they’ve said it.* Some […]
What I am about to say is against interest. You see, I am a law professor, and law professors are “paid to push the envelope on legal thought and theory.” But I will say it anyway. In my heart of hearts, I am a very boring person. I like stability. I like predictability. I like […]
Last week’s post discussed the Court’s en banc oral argument in PHH Corp. v. CFPB. This week’s post will discuss the other hugely important administrative law case pending before the en banc Court: Raymond J. Lucia Companies, Inc. v. SEC. The format will be the same — as will be the caveats. Again, I do […]
This has been a very busy week in the D.C. Circuit. Not only did the Court issue eight opinions, it also heard oral argument en banc in two of the most important administrative law cases of the year. (Jennifer Mascott has already shared her thoughts.) The oral arguments are fascinating. If you are interested, the […]
Apologies: I’m traveling this week so this post will be quick. In my mind, I can hear Judge Janice Rogers Brown say “This is stealing.” To be clear, I’ve not spoken with her about Keepseagle v. Perdue, one of the week’s big cases. So I suppose I don’t really know what she said. Even so, […]
This is a special midweek edition of D.C. Circuit Review — Reviewed. I’ll post again on Friday. Last Friday I offered a “small thought” about the chief judge of the D.C. Circuit — namely, that for the last few decades, the chief judge has left active status even when there was a very good chance […]
I did not think the President’s decision to fire James Comey as FBI Director would have any connection with the D.C. Circuit (well, beyond the fact that Judge Silberman was quoted in Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s letter). Yet just a few days later, I see that Chief Judge Garland is being pitched as a […]
This has been a surprisingly quiet week in the D.C. Circuit: Only one new case — and it is not especially noteworthy. Yet the D.C. Circuit’s term is winding down and there are still many cases to decide. I expected more opinions. (On the other hand, for what it is worth, last year, the first […]
Last September I suggested that those trying to predict the Clean Power Plan outcome by looking at the judges and “counting ‘R’s and ‘D’s” may be in for a surprise. The D.C. Circuit, after all, is serious about its craft and the idea that cases can be predicted this way is — in the words […]
Apologies — this will have to be a quick post. I’m traveling.* On Friday, April 21, the D.C. Circuit issued two opinions about the power of knowledge. The government lost both cases — one in which it sought information and the other in which someone else sought information from it. In CFPB v. Accrediting Council […]
In case you missed it, Profesor Neomi Rao has been nominated to serve as the next Administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. In the world of “admin law,” there are few positions more important than OIRA Administrator. Cass Sunstein, a former OIRA Administrator, has explained at length why the position […]
Each week I try to come up with a new theme for the D.C. Circuit’s cases. It can be tricky. Last night, in particular, I worried about what I would write this week. Should I write something about soon-to-be-Justice Neil Gorsuch? Perhaps, but I did that last week. My sleep was thus uneasy; I certainly […]
It’s no secret that the D.C. Circuit is the launching pad for many Supreme Court justices. Indeed, prior to Justice Scalia’s passing, fully half of the Supreme Court came from the D.C. Circuit: Chief Justice Roberts, Justice Scalia, Justice Thomas, Justice Ginsburg, and Justice Kagan. (Kagan counts for half; she was nominated to the D.C. […]
Perhaps I’ve mentioned this before, but one of the most surprising things for me when I clerked for the Supreme Court was the fact that there is a party for the clerks every week. Each Thursday evening, the clerks from one of the chambers hosts a “happy hour” — complete with a meal — for […]