http://www.oyez.org/cases/1999/podcast-decisions U.S. Supreme Court Opinion Announcements, presented by The Oyez Project (www.oyez.org) en The Oyez Project at Chicago-Kent http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1648/opinion Does Chapter 2 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981 violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment? Wed, 28 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58708 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1856/opinion Does Colorado's statutory requirement that speakers obtain consent from people within 100 feet of a health care facility's entrance before speaking, displaying signs, or distributing leaflets to such people violate the First Amendment rights of the speaker? Wed, 28 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58632 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_830/opinion Does the Nebraska statute, which makes the performance of a "partial birth abortions" a crime, violate the liberty protected by due process of the Fourteenth Amendment in the U.S. Constitution? Wed, 28 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58765 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_699/opinion Does the application of New Jersey's public accommodations law violate the Boy Scouts' First Amendment right of expressive association to bar homosexuals from serving as troop leaders? Wed, 28 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58683 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_244/opinion Does the enactment of a new statute, which prevents the Federal Government from following a contractual promise to follow the terms of pre-existing statutes and regulations, constitute the repudiation of a contract? Mon, 26 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58767 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_401/opinion Does California's voter approved Proposition 198, which changes its partisan primary from a closed primary to a blanket primary, violate political parties' First Amendment right of association? Mon, 26 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58763 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_478/opinion Does the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment require that any fact that increases the penalty for a crime beyond the prescribed statutory maximum be submitted to a jury and proved beyond a reasonable doubt? Mon, 26 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58689 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_5525/opinion May Congress legislatively overrule Miranda v. Arizona and its warnings that govern the admissibility of statements made during custodial interrogation? Mon, 26 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58712 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_474/opinion Is the Massachusetts Burma Law, which restricts the authority of its agencies to purchase goods or services from companies doing business with Burma, unconstitutional under the Supremacy Clause? Mon, 19 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58634 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_62/opinion Does the Santa Fe Independent School District's policy permitting student-led, student-initiated prayer at football games violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment? Mon, 19 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58642 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_8_orig/opinion Are the Quechan Tribe and the United States claims for increased water rights for the Fort Yuma Reservation from the Colorado River precluded by the Supreme Court's prior decision in Arizona v. California and by a consent judgement? Mon, 19 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58746 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_224/opinion Does the Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1995's "automatic stay" provision preclude courts from exercising their equitable powers to enjoin such a stay? Does the provision violate the constitutional separation-of-powers doctrine? Mon, 19 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58735 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_579/opinion Does section 502(a)(3) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, which authorizes a "participant, beneficiary, or fiduciary" of a plan to bring a civil action to obtain "appropriate equitable relief" to redress violations of ERISA, extend to a suit against a nonfiduciary "party in interest" to a transaction barred by section 406(a)? Mon, 12 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58700 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_7000/opinion Must a jury must be instructed in the death penalty phase of sentencing that if the defendant is not given the death sentence, that he will be ineligible for parole if sentenced to life in prison? Mon, 12 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58753 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_5716/opinion May defendants charged with federal bank robbery have the jury consider whether they committed the lesser crime of federal bank larceny? Mon, 12 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58659 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_536/opinion Is a plaintiff's prima facie case of age discrimination, combined with sufficient evidence for a reasonable factfinder to reject the employer's nondiscriminatory explanation for its decision, adequate to sustain a finding of liability for intentional discrimination under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967? Mon, 12 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58704 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1949/opinion Are treatment decisions made by a health maintenance organization, acting through its physician employees, fiduciary acts within the meaning of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974? Mon, 12 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58661 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_9537/opinion Is a Social Security claimant barred from federal judicial review of issues he or she failed to raise during the administrative process? Mon, 05 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58693 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_138/opinion Does the Washington statute, which allows any person to petition for a court- ordered right to see a child over a custodial parent's objection if such visitation is found to be in the child's best interest, unconstitutionally interfere with the fundamental right of parents to rear their children? Mon, 05 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58650 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_166/opinion Does the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination protect a witness from being compelled to disclose the existence of incriminating documents that the Government is unable to describe with reasonable particularity? If the witness produces such documents, pursuant to a grant of immunity, may the Government use them to prepare criminal charges against him? Mon, 05 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58687 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_658/opinion Does the provision of USC Section 924(c)(1), which imposes a stiffer penalty for using a "machinegun" in a crime of violence, state factors enhancing a sentence rather than elements of a separate offense? Mon, 05 Jun 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58726 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_387/opinion Does the burden of proof on a tax claim in bankruptcy court remain with the trustee in a bankruptcy? Tue, 30 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58706 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_409/opinion Does 11 USC Section 506(c) allow an administrative claimant in a bankruptcy case to seek payment of its administrative claim from the property of a bankrupt estate encumbered by a secured creditor's lien? Tue, 30 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58722 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1828/opinion May a private individual bring suit in federal court on behalf of the United States against a state or state agency under the False Claims Act? Mon, 22 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58640 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1682/opinion Is section 505 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 the least restrictive means to block the transmission of cable television channels primarily dedicated to sexually oriented programming, such that it does not violate the First Amendment? Mon, 22 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58685 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_5739/opinion Does the federal arson statute apply to the arson of a private residence? Mon, 22 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58730 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_9828/opinion Does a defendant waive her right to appeal a ruling granting the government's motion to introduce evidence of a prior conviction under Federal Rule of Evidence 609(a)(1), if she introduces the prior conviction while testifying on direct examination? Mon, 22 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58702 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1811/opinion Does the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 pre-empt a tort action in which the plaintiff claims that the defendant auto manufacturer, who was in compliance with the safety standard promulgated under the Act, should nonetheless have equipped an automobile with airbags? Mon, 22 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58724 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1991/opinion Do the Secretary of the Interior's amendments governing grazing preferences, permit issuance, and ownership of range improvements to the Taylor Grazing Act of 1934 exceed the authority that this statute grants the Secretary and violate the Act? Mon, 15 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58648 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_5/opinion Does Congress have the authority to enact the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 under either the Commerce Clause or Fourteenth Amendment? Mon, 15 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58627 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_5153/opinion May a district court, under the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984, impose an additional term of supervised release following the reimprisonment of those who violate the conditions of an initial term of supervised release, without violating the Ex Post Facto Clause? Mon, 15 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58761 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_116/opinion Do Medicare funds received by health care providers constitute "benefits" within the meaning of the federal bribery statute prohibiting fraud and other offenses against organizations receiving federal benefits? Mon, 15 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58697 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_7540/opinion Does an amended Texas statute that authorizes the conviction of sexual offenses on the victim's testimony alone, whereas the statute previously required the victim's testimony along with corroborating evidence, violate the constitutional prohibition against State "ex post facto" laws when applied in a trial for offenses committed before the amendment's effective date? Mon, 01 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58759 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1167/opinion Does the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 prohibit a public employer from compelling its employees to use their compensatory time without a preexisting agreement? Mon, 01 May 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58636 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_2060/opinion May a state prisoner's procedurally defaulted claim of ineffective assistance of counsel excuse the procedural default of another habeas corpus claim? Tue, 25 Apr 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58663 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_502/opinion May a party, who has been made a party to a civil action, be simultaneously made personally liable? Tue, 25 Apr 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58718 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_8384/opinion Was Terry Williams' constitutional right to the effective assistance of counsel violated? Was the judgment of the Virginia Supreme Court refusing to set aside Williams' death sentence "contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States?" Tue, 18 Apr 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58720 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_6615/opinion Does federal law, as amended by the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, bar an evidentiary hearing, if the petitioner has failed to develop the factual basis of his claims in State court proceedings despite diligent efforts? Tue, 18 Apr 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58681 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_9349/opinion Does a law enforcement officer's physical manipulation of a bus passenger's carry-on luggage violate the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches? Mon, 17 Apr 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58625 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_312/opinion Does the Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970 pre-empt tort claims, based on State statutory and common law, concerning a railroad's failure to maintain adequate warning devices at crossings where federal funds have participated in the installation of the devices? Mon, 17 Apr 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58757 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_391/opinion Does federal jurisdiction extend to class actions in which not all the claims of individual class members satisfy the $50,000 amount-in-controversy requirement of 28 USC section 1332, as long as diversity jurisdiction exists over the claims of one named plaintiff and, thus, supplemental jurisdiction exists over the claims of the unnamed plaintiffs? Mon, 03 Apr 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58744 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1161/opinion Does Erie, Pennsylvania's public indecency ordinance, as applied to prohibit nude dancing, violate the First Amendment's guarantee of free expression? Wed, 29 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58695 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1993/opinion Did searching J.L. solely on the basis of the anonymous tip received by the Miami-Dade police violate his Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable search and seizure? Tue, 28 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58671 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_137/opinion Does the retroactive application of a Georgia provision permitting the extension of intervals between parole considerations violate the Ex Post Facto Clause? Tue, 28 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58667 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1189/opinion May public universities and colleges subsidize campus groups by means of a mandatory student activity fee without violating the First Amendment rights of students who find some campus groups objectionable? Wed, 22 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58654 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_150/opinion Is a product's design is distinctive, and therefore protectible, from "knockoffs" in an action for infringement of unregistered trade dress under section 43(a) of the Trademark Act of 1946? Wed, 22 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58710 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1152/opinion Does the Food and Drug Administration have the authority to regulate tobacco products as "drugs" and "devices" under the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act? Tue, 21 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58638 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1960/opinion Do the venue provisions of the Federal Arbitration Act limit motions to confirm, vacate, or modify an arbitration award to the district where the award was made? Tue, 21 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58669 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1170/opinion Does a prosecutor's summation comment calling to the jury's attention the fact that the defendant had opportunity to hear all the other witnesses before testifying and tailor his testimony violate the accused's rights under the Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments? Mon, 06 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58644 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1701/opinion Are the State of Washington's maritime regulations on tanker design, equipment, reporting, and operating requirements pre-empted by federal law? Mon, 06 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58749 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1696/opinion May a federal criminal defendant's excess prison time be credited towards this supervised release term, reducing its length? Wed, 01 Mar 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58714 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1109/opinion Does the Medicare Act bar judicial review, under federal-question jurisdiction, of challenges to the validity of Medicare regulations? Tue, 29 Feb 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58630 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1288/opinion Does the Equal Protection Clause give rise to a cause of action on behalf of a "class of one" where the plaintiff did not allege membership in a class or group? Wed, 23 Feb 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58737 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1441/opinion Does trial counsel have a duty to file a notice of appeal following a guilty plea if the defendant has not requested so, but has been informed of his appeal rights? Wed, 23 Feb 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58755 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_818/opinion Does the Hawaiian Constitutional provision, which limits the right to for the trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs to qualified "Hawaiians," violate the Fifteenth Amendment by creating a race-based voting qualification? Wed, 23 Feb 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58733 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_896/opinion Does the four year statute of limitations on claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act begin to run before a claimant actually discovers that a defendant's racketeering activity caused the harm? Wed, 23 Feb 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58646 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_2043/opinion Does California's exception to its interest expense deduction, which it measures by the amount of nonunitary dividend and interest income that a nondomiciliary corporation has received, violate the Due Process and Commerce Clauses? Tue, 22 Feb 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58656 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1667/opinion Are remittances of withholding tax and estimated income tax paid on the due date of the taxpayer's income tax return? Tue, 22 Feb 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58673 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_161/opinion May an appeals court order judgment as a matter of law after determining that a plaintiff's expert testimony should have been excluded at trial and that the remaining evidence was insufficient to support the verdict? Tue, 22 Feb 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58675 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_963/opinion Does Buckley v. Valeo govern state regulations on contributions to state political candidates? Do the federal limits approved in Buckley, with or without adjustment for inflation, define the scope of permissible state limitations? Is Missouri's statutory limit on campaign contributions unconstitutional? Mon, 24 Jan 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58677 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_5746/opinion Is the Constitution's due process requirement violated when a trial judge directs a capital jury's attention to a specific paragraph of a constitutionally sufficient instruction in response to a question regarding the proper consideration of mitigating circumstances? Wed, 19 Jan 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58691 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_99_51/opinion Does the Organic Act of Guam require a runoff election when a candidate slate has received a majority of the votes cast for Governor and Lieutenant Governor, but not a majority of the number of ballots cast in the simultaneous general election? Wed, 19 Jan 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58728 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1037/opinion Does California's no-merit brief procedure, in which defense counsel has concluded that an appeal would be frivolous, violate a defendant's right to the effective assistance of appellate counsel? Wed, 19 Jan 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58739 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1255/opinion s a defendant's peremptory challenge right impaired or denied when he or she peremptorily challenges a potential juror, whom the district court erroneously refused to excuse for cause, and the defendant thereafter exhausts his peremptory challenges? Wed, 19 Jan 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58652 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1299/opinion Does a defense counsel's agreement to a trial date outside the 180-day time period required by Article III of the Interstate Agreement on Detainers waive the defendant's right to a speedy trial? Tue, 11 Jan 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58679 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_791/opinion Does the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 abrogate the states' Eleventh Amendment immunity? Tue, 11 Jan 2000 13:00:00 +0000 58741 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_678/opinion Does California's amended public record statute, under which an arrestee's address disclosed by governmental agency may not be used to sell a product or service, violate the First Amendment's protection of commercial speech? Tue, 07 Dec 1999 13:00:00 +0000 58716 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_1101/opinion Does an heir's interest to an estate constitute "property" or "rights to property" such that federal liens are valid against the heir's interest, even if the heir has disclaimed the interest under state law? Tue, 07 Dec 1999 13:00:00 +0000 58751 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1999/1999_98_942/opinion Should federal habeas corpus relief be extended to protect a defendant whose conviction was upheld even though his co-defendant's conviction under the same law was invalidated after a state court ruled that he had been prosecuted under the wrong law? Does the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause require that the defendant's conviction be set aside? Tue, 30 Nov 1999 13:00:00 +0000 58665 at http://www.oyez.org