It was quite a week for hot-button issues in Washington, D.C. During the same week that the U.S. Supreme Court resolved two petitions in cases challenging S.B. 8—the Texas law prohibiting abortions after about six weeks—the D.C. Circuit decided cases touching on January 6, the travel ban, a mask mandate, and, of course, Entergy Arkansas’ […]

The big opinion this past week was Electronic Privacy Information Center v. U.S. Department of Justice, No. 20-5364 (D.C. Cir. Nov. 30, 2021), in which the Court considered Buzzfeed’s appeal of a decision permitting DOJ to redact portions of the Mueller report that relate to individuals who were investigated but not charged by the Special […]

There were no new opinions last week, likely due to the Thanksgiving holiday.  But that didn’t stop the court from issuing an interesting order on Tuesday, that likely led to some holiday-weekend work for a few attorneys.  The case is Trump v. Thompson and it deals with the House investigation into the January 6th riots.  […]

The D.C. Circuit published only one opinion this week, resolving a long-running suit that had become moot. The Court also announced that it will reopen for in-person arguments on December 1, 2021. Court watchers can find the protocols here. Members of the general public won’t be allowed to attend in-person, but can watch arguments on […]

The D.C. Circuit cleared out some long-running cases this week, releasing two opinions from three cases argued in September and December 2020, plus a third opinion in a case from this term. The two older cases drew dissents from Judge Millett. If you’re keeping count, that’s four cases, three opinions, and two dissents, which encompassed […]

In the “bad old days,” the D.C. Circuit was the butt of many a joke – deserved or not – about the sleep-inducing qualities of its opinions. When I was running the gauntlet of the nominations process, a White House lawyer asked me, in all seriousness, “Tom, how can you stand the thought of spending […]

I hope everyone had a happy Halloween weekend. My husband and I took our children trick-or-treating not far from the E. Barrett Prettyman Courthouse, where we enjoyed perfect fall weather in a festive residential neighborhood of D.C. At my children’s request, I was dressed as Mayor Goodway, the mayor of Adventure Bay in the animated […]

Judge Douglas Ginsburg is a formidable jurist. When he speaks, we’d all do well to listen. A few weeks ago, I heard Judge Ginsburg give a presentation to lawyers. He was asked what lawyers can do to improve their advocacy. His response surprised me. Mentioning Edward Tufte’s The Visual Display of Quantitative Information by name, […]

I’m thrilled to close out the first cycle of posts for the refreshed D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed.  I consider myself the clear novice of the group, and look forward to reading and learning more throughout the term.  Fortunately, the court is easing me into my role, issuing only one decision this week.  Breiterman v. […]

While this is my first post for D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed, I am happy to return to blogging at Notice & Comment and to be part of the team keeping you up to date when opinions drop — and when they don’t. This week they didn’t. But the D.C. Circuit heard oral argument in […]

In my first post for Notice and Comment, let me begin by saying how grateful I am for the opportunity to join the D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed team. I look forward to seeing what my fellow contributors have to say each week as we try to keep you up to date on the D.C. […]

At my investiture, I confessed that I had long been in awe of the judges on the D.C. Circuit who were now my colleagues. Caveat lector: Nothing changed during the fifteen years that I served alongside them. Which means that my contributions to the D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed, a blog I read religiously while […]

Happy (belated) Constitution Day! This is my first post for Notice and Comment, and I am grateful to the Yale Journal on Regulation and my fellow authors of the D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed for the opportunity.  Appropriately, the Constitution plays a role in both decisions issued by the D.C. Circuit on Constitution Day.    […]

The D.C. Circuit did not decide any cases this week. But that doesn’t mean there is no news. To the contrary: What a wonderful — and sobering — sentiment. The D.C. Circuit is a serious place and when it is at its best, the judges truly have a common calling. I recall (as I’ve recounted […]

Tomorrow is the first day of the D.C. Circuit’s new term. And today is the first day of Version 2.0 of D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed, your weekly source of information on the nation’s “second most important court.” Between 2015 and 2020, I closely tracked the D.C. Circuit’s cases.* Over time, I learned the patterns; […]