My posts are designed to help you keep track of the D.C. Circuit — with particular focus on administrative law — in five minutes a week. To that end, for nearly five years I’ve provided a summary of the week’s cases.* But this week I’ve really gone above and beyond the call of duty. I’ve […]
This week the Supreme Court unanimously reversed the D.C. Circuit; that doesn’t happen very often. And yesterday there was a (puzzling) brouhaha about a procedural order. Even so, on the whole, it has been a quiet week for the D.C. Circuit.* So I’ll claim a moment of personal privilege. This morning Jerry Sloan passed away. […]
About a year ago I wrote a post entitled Precedential Musings; a few months later I wrote a post entitled A Question Answered.* This week, the D.C. Circuit returned to the issue. In Qassim v. Trump, Judge Millett, joined by Judges Pillard and Edwards, concluded that D.C. Circuit precedent (most notably, Kiyemba v. Obama) merely holds that […]
Like everyone else, I’m saddened at the passing of Justice Ginsburg — another giant of the law. Every year, my Civil Procedure syllabus opens with this observation from “RBG”: “You can have all the rights in the world, but if you can’t enforce them, they aren’t worth very much.” It is hard to find a […]
It was a very quiet week in the D.C. Circuit — just two opinions. In Waggel v. George Washington University, Judge Rao (joined by Judges Rogers and Garland), affirmed that a psychiatry resident could not sue her former employer because she did not request an accommodation or “rebut the University’s legitimate justifications for its actions.” […]
“[P]etitions for rehearing en banc are frequently filed but rarely granted.” So says the Handbook of Practice and Internal Procedures of the D.C. Circuit. Yet this week’s post is all about en banc. First, the D.C. Circuit sat en banc on Monday to hear Allegheny Defense Project v. FERC and on Tuesday to hear Committee […]
About a year ago I wrote a post entitled “Chevron Waiver.” Here is the gist of it: So the Court, this week, wasn’t that busy. Which is good, because it gives me time to elaborate on an issue that came up last week: Chevron waiver. I promised to discuss recent scholarship on the topic. Well, here are three recent articles […]
A couple of weeks back I finished D.C. Circuit Review — Reviewed as a weekly series.* If you’re interested, I’ve penned a short essay about what I’ve learned from five year of posts. I’ve also attached the posts as an appendix so they are available in a single (control-F searchable) place. Here’s the abstract: Thanks […]
I teach administrative law for a living — but that isn’t the only thing I teach. I also teach Federal Courts. One thing I enjoy about “Fed Courts” in particular is dusting off old cases, which form a big chunk of the canon. For instance, last month while prepping for class I stumbled across this […]
I received an email a few days ago from a student looking to clerk.* He has authorized me to post it here. Re: Mailing Clerkship Applications to Chambers During Quarantine Professor Nielson, I’ve been working on clerkship applications over the past week and just realized that judges are unlikely to be in chambers to receive […]
I’m pleased to report that the University of Pennsylvania Law Review has agreed to publish my latest article: The Minor Questions Doctrine. Here’s the abstract: Few aspects of administrative law are as controversial as the major questions doctrine—the exception to Chevron deference that bars courts from deferring to an agency’s otherwise reasonable interpretation of an […]
About a month ago Kristin Hickman tweeted the following: The promised call for papers is now live. The good folks at the Duke Law Journal are owed many thanks for organizing and hosting. It should be a lot of fun. Duke Law Journal’s Annual Administrative Law Symposium Call for Papers The Duke Law Journal invites […]
Nope!* * It’s been a good run. If you’re interested, here is the complete list of posts: August 2015: Obamacare Round 3? King Solomon and the APA “It was the best of times ….” Can You Keep a Secret? September 2015: The Second Most Important Court? The Future of […]
The D.C. Circuit didn’t decide any cases this week … but the White House today did announce its nominee for the Court’s upcoming vacancy: Judge Justin Walker. Here is the announcement: I don’t know Judge Walker well. We met once at an academic workshop on administrative law. In my limited experience, I found him to […]
I’m pleased to announce that I’ve written an important new article: “The New Separation of Powers in the Age of Coronavirus.” This is still a draft; comments definitely welcome. ### Obviously, I kid. The title, however, comes from a great post at PrawfsBlawg by Paul Horwitz. Professor Horwitz — whom I’ve never met, but whose […]