The U.S. Supreme Court’s current term featured major decisions involving former President Donald Trump’s claim of immunity from prosecution and his ballot disqualification, abortion rights, gun rights, the power of federal agencies, social media regulation, Purdue Pharma’s bankruptcy settlement, and others. Here are the rulings issued in various cases:
TRUMP IMMUNITY CLAIM
On July 1, the court ruled that Trump cannot be prosecuted for actions within his constitutional powers as president, but he can be prosecuted for private acts. This landmark 6-3 decision recognized for the first time any form of presidential immunity from prosecution. The ruling threw out a lower court’s decision that had rejected Trump’s claim of immunity from federal criminal charges related to his efforts to undo his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden. The court stated that immunity for former presidents is “absolute” regarding their “core constitutional powers,” and a former president has “at least a presumptive immunity” for “acts within the outer perimeter of his official responsibility.”
OBSTRUCTION CHARGE
On June 28, the justices raised the legal bar for prosecutors pursuing obstruction charges in the federal election subversion case against Trump and defendants involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The justices ruled 6-3 to dismiss a lower court’s decision that had allowed a charge of corruptly obstructing an official proceeding against a defendant from Pennsylvania. This ruling affects Trump and others charged in Jan. 6-related cases.
TRUMP BALLOT DISQUALIFICATION
On March 4, the court handed Trump a major victory by barring states from disqualifying candidates for federal office under a constitutional provision involving insurrection. The justices unanimously overturned Colorado’s decision to exclude Trump from its ballot, finding that the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment did not disqualify him from holding public office. Colorado had previously found Trump guilty of participating in an insurrection for inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
ABORTION PILL ACCESS
On June 13, the justices rejected a bid by anti-abortion groups and doctors to restrict access to the abortion pill in a 9-0 ruling, favoring President Joe Biden’s administration’s efforts to maintain broad access to the drug. The court overturned a lower court’s decision to roll back FDA steps that eased how mifepristone is prescribed and distributed, ruling that the plaintiffs lacked the necessary legal standing.
IDAHO ABORTION LAW
On June 27, the justices allowed abortions in Idaho when pregnant women face medical emergencies, effectively reinstating a federal judge’s ruling that Idaho’s near-total abortion ban must yield to the 1986 Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act. This 6-3 decision did not decide the case on its merits but aligned with Biden’s administration’s stance.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE GUN CURBS
On June 21, the court upheld a federal law making it a crime for people under domestic violence restraining orders to possess guns. The 8-1 ruling overturned a lower court’s decision that had found the 1994 law violated the Second Amendment.
BUMP STOCKS
On June 14, the court declared unlawful a federal ban on “bump stock” devices, which enable semiautomatic weapons to fire rapidly like machine guns. The 6-3 ruling upheld a lower court’s decision siding with a Texas plaintiff challenging the ban, which the ATF had implemented in 2019 after a mass shooting in Las Vegas.
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION FREE SPEECH
On May 30, the justices revived a National Rifle Association lawsuit accusing a New York state official of coercing banks and insurers to avoid doing business with the NRA. The 9-0 ruling warned public officials against using their power to punish speech they dislike.
SOUTH CAROLINA VOTING
On May 23, the court made it harder to prove racial discrimination in electoral maps, backing South Carolina Republicans who moved 30,000 Black residents when redrawing a congressional district. The 6-3 decision reversed a lower court’s ruling that the map had violated Black voters’ rights under the 14th Amendment.
FEDERAL AGENCY POWERS
On June 28, the court overturned a 1984 precedent that had given deference to government agencies in interpreting laws they administer. The justices ruled 6-3 to set aside lower court decisions against fishing companies challenging a government-run program monitoring overfishing.
SEC IN-HOUSE ENFORCEMENT
On June 27, the justices rejected the SEC’s in-house enforcement of laws protecting investors against securities fraud. The 6-3 decision upheld a lower court’s ruling siding with a Texas-based hedge fund manager contesting the legality of the SEC’s actions.
OZONE EMISSIONS
On June 27, the court blocked an EPA regulation aimed at reducing ozone emissions that may worsen air pollution in neighboring states. The 5-4 decision halted enforcement of the EPA’s “Good Neighbor” plan while contesting its legality in a lower court.
CONSUMER WATCHDOG AGENCY’S FUNDING
On May 16, the justices upheld the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s funding mechanism in a challenge brought by the payday loan industry. The 7-2 decision reversed a lower court’s ruling that the CFPB’s funding design violated the U.S. Constitution.
DEBIT CARD ‘SWIPE FEES’
On July 1, the court revived a North Dakota convenience store’s challenge to a Federal Reserve regulation on debit card “swipe fees.” The 6-3 decision reversed a lower court’s dismissal of the lawsuit challenging the 2011 rule on the amount businesses pay banks for debit card transactions.
PURDUE PHARMA BANKRUPTCY SETTLEMENT
On June 27, the court blocked Purdue Pharma’s bankruptcy settlement, which would have shielded its wealthy Sackler family owners from lawsuits over their role in the opioid epidemic. The 5-4 decision reversed a lower court’s ruling that upheld the settlement plan.
SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT MODERATION
On July 1, the court threw out judicial decisions involving challenges to Republican-backed laws in Florida and Texas designed to restrict the power of social media companies to curb objectionable content. The justices directed lower appeals courts to reconsider their decisions on these 2021 laws.
SOCIAL MEDIA AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS
On March 15, the justices decided that government officials can sometimes be sued under the First Amendment for blocking critics on social media. In unanimous rulings, the court set a new standard for determining if public officials acted in a governmental capacity when blocking critics.
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION SOCIAL MEDIA
On June 26, the justices declined to limit how the Biden administration communicates with social media platforms, rejecting a challenge to how officials encouraged the removal of posts deemed misinformation. The 6-3 ruling found that the challengers lacked the necessary legal standing.
HOMELESS ENCAMPMENTS
On June 28, the court upheld anti-camping laws used by authorities in Oregon to stop homeless people from sleeping in public parks and streets. The 6-3 ruling overturned a lower court’s decision that found enforcing the ordinances violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on “cruel and unusual” punishments.
STARBUCKS UNIONIZATION
On June 13, the justices sided with Starbucks in its challenge to a judicial order to rehire seven Memphis employees fired while seeking to unionize. The unanimous ruling could make it harder for courts to quickly halt contested labor practices.
WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION LAWSUITS
On April 17, the justices made it easier to bring certain workplace discrimination lawsuits, ruling in favor of a St. Louis police officer who claimed she was transferred due to her sex. The unanimous decision disapproved requiring proof that discrimination caused significant harm.
‘TRUMP TOO SMALL’ TRADEMARK
On June 13, the court barred a federal trademark for the phrase “Trump Too Small,” rejecting a California lawyer’s claim that the denial violated his First Amendment rights. The unanimous decision overturned a lower court’s ruling on the trademark issue.
