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SCOTUS Delivers (Mostly) Banner Term for Business

The U.S. Supreme Court term ended with a bang June 27, when Justice Anthony Kennedy revealed that he would retire from the bench after three decades. But even without that bombshell announcement, the term was a barn burner, with decisions ranging from the travel ban to abortion rights to voter laws. In this Instant Insights, we’re looking at the decisions that most closely affect businesses—those that will impact many of you and your clients.

News

Justices, Overturning Precedent, Restrict Labor Union Power to Collect Fees

Marcia Coyle | June 27, 2018

Justice Samuel Alito Jr. wrote that the majority recognized that the loss of payments from nonmembers may cause unions to experience "unpleasant transition costs in the short term." However, he added, "We must weigh these disadvantages against the considerable windfall that unions have received under Abood for the past 41 years."

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Justices, Divided, Say Employment Contracts Banning Class Actions Are Lawful

Marcia Coyle | May 21, 2018

"The policy may be debatable but the law is clear: Congress has instructed that arbitration agreements like those before us must be enforced as written," Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the majority. In dissent, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg called the decision "egregiously wrong."
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US Supreme Court, Divided, Buys Into Wider Legalized Sports Betting

Tony Mauro | May 14, 2018

The justices in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association found the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act infringed on state sovereignty. The decision could transform sports and sports gambling from coast to coast.
Rare Alliance Between Class Action Plaintiffs, US Chamber Prevails at Supreme Court

Tony Mauro | June 14, 2018

The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling Thursday was a boost to class action plaintiffs in dispute over vitamin C. Foreign law deserves "respectful consideration," Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote, but it doesn't decide this class action.
'The SEC Has a Big Problem Now' After Broad Whistleblower Protections Curbed

C. Ryan Barber | February 22, 2018

“They’ve been encouraging people to report internally. Now they have to think twice about that because they’re essentially encouraging people to report internally and go into harm’s way.”

News

Justices Rule for Colorado Baker Who Refused to Make a Cake for Gay Wedding

Marcia Coyle Tony Mauro | June 04, 2018

"Whatever the confluence of speech and free exercise principles might be in some cases, the Colorado Civil Rights Commission’s consideration of this case was inconsistent with the state’s obligation of religious neutrality," Kennedy wrote for the 7-2 court.
Unanimous US Supreme Court Bars 'Stacked' Class Actions

Marcia Coyle | June 11, 2018

“We hold that American Pipe does not permit a plaintiff who waits out the statute of limitations to piggyback on an earlier, timely filed class action,” Ginsburg wrote for the court Monday in "China Agritech v. Resh." The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Washington Legal Foundation and others supported China Agritech in amicus briefs.
Supreme Court's Internet Sales Tax Ruling Is Billion-Dollar Boon for States

Tony Mauro Marcia Coyle | June 21, 2018

The U.S. Supreme Court says states are allowed to collect sales taxes from online retailers that don’t have a have a physical presence in their borders. By a 5-4 vote in the case South Dakota v. Wayfair, the majority overturned the court's 1992 decision in Quill v. North Dakota, which had affirmed the “physical presence” test for state sales-and-use tax collections.