http://www.oyez.org/cases/2006/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/2000-2009/2006/2006_137%20ORIG/opinion Has Wyoming violated the Yellowstone River Compact by leaving less water in the river for Montana's uses? Mon, 02 May 2011 13:00:00 +0000 80139 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_6407/opinion Does the Eighth Amendment permit the execution of an inmate who has a factual awareness of the State's stated reason for his execution, but who lacks, due to mental illness, a rational understanding of the State's justification? Thu, 28 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54942 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_480/opinion Is it per se illegal under Section 1 of the Sherman Act for a manufacturer to set mandatory minimum prices for its products? Thu, 28 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54914 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_908/opinion 1) Do the decisions in Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger apply to public high school students? 2) Is racial diversity a compelling interest that can justify the use of race in selecting students for admission to public high schools? 3) Does a school district that normally permits a student to attend the high school of her choice violate the Equal Protection Clause by denying the student admission to her chosen school because of her race in an effort to achieve a desired racial balance? Thu, 28 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54934 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_219/opinion 1) Can government officials acting pursuant to their regulatory authority be guilty of extortion under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) for attempting to obtain property for the benefit of the government? 2) Is a Bivens claim based on Fifth Amendment rights precluded by the availability of judicial review under the Administrative Procedure Act? 3) Does the Fifth Amendment protect against retaliation for exercising a "right to exclude" the government from one's property? Mon, 25 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54892 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_157/opinion Do taxpayers have standing to bring an Establishment Clause challenge against Executive Branch actions funded by general appropriations rather than by any specific congressional grant? Mon, 25 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54864 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_969/opinion Is the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act's ban on the use of corporate treasury funds for political advertisements in the 60 days before an election unconstitutional as applied to advertisements that do not explicitly endorse or oppose a candidate? Mon, 25 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54902 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_278/opinion 1) Does the First Amendment allow public schools to prohibit students from displaying messages promoting the use of illegal drugs at school-supervised events? 2) Does a school official have qualified immunity from a damages lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 when, in accordance with school policy, she disciplines a student for displaying a banner with a drug reference at a school-supervised event? Mon, 25 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54912 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_340/opinion 1) Can a court require that state Clean Water Act pollution permitting programs include protections for endangered species? 2) Does Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act constitute an independent source of authority for federal agencies? 3) Is the EPA's approval of a state permitting program the legally relevant cause of impacts to endangered species resulting from future private land use activities? 4) Was the Court of Appeals correct that the EPA's decision to transfer pollution-permitting authority to Arizona under the Clean Water Act was arbitrary and capricious because it was based on inconsistent interpretations of Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act? If so, should the Court of Appeals have sent the case back to the EPA for further proceedings without ruling on the interpretation of Section 7(a)(2)? Mon, 25 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54898 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_484/opinion In considering whether a securities fraud complaint alleges facts sufficient to establish a "strong inference" that the defendant acted with intent to deceive, as required by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, must a court also consider competing inferences of an innocent mental state that might be drawn from the same facts? Thu, 21 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54920 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_5754/opinion 1) Does the Supreme Court's decision in U.S. v. Booker allow courts to accord a presumption of reasonableness to sentences that fall within the Federal Sentencing Guidelines? 2) If so, may a court presume a within- Guidelines sentence reasonable without an explicit analysis of the 18 U.S.C. 3553(a) factors that might justify a lesser sentence? Thu, 21 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54890 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_427/opinion Does a voluntary association composed primarily of public schools violate the First Amendment's protection of free speech when the association punishes a member school for violating athletic recruiting rules that the school agreed to follow? Thu, 21 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54963 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_85/opinion 1) Does an entity whose shares are wholly owned by a governmental corporation that acts on behalf of a foreign state qualify as an "organ of a foreign state" for purposes of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976 and therefore have sovereign immunity? 2) Did the Court of Appeals have jurisdiction to review the District Court's order sending the case back to state court? Mon, 18 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54951 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1157/opinion Do defendants in private antitrust lawsuits have implied immunity when the challenged conduct is highly regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission and when the lawsuit has the potential to conflict with securities laws? Mon, 18 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54936 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_8120/opinion When a vehicle is subject to a traffic stop, is a passenger in the vehicle "detained" for purposes of the Fourth Amendment? Mon, 18 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54874 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_5306/opinion May a federal Court of Appeals, acting on its own, dismiss an appeal as too late under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 4(a)(6) when the appeal is filed after the 14-day extension specified in the Rule but before the deadline established by the District Court? Thu, 14 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54854 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_134/opinion 1) Does a suit to recover property taxes imposed on property owned by a foreign state fall within the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act's "immovable property" exception to sovereign immunity? 2) Did the court of appeals err in relying on two international agreements to which the United States is not a party in the course of interpreting the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act? Thu, 14 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54918 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1589/opinion Does a state law requiring labor unions to obtain permission from non-union members before using the non-members' fees for political purposes violate unions' First Amendment rights? Thu, 14 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54876 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1284/opinion Is the need to comply with Federal Trade Commission advertising regulations sufficient to establish that a tobacco company is a "person acting under a federal officer" for purposes of 28 U.S.C. 1442(a)(1)? Mon, 11 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54928 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1448/opinion Does the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 require an employer to consider merging an employee pension plan into a multiemployer pension plan prior to terminating the plan? Mon, 11 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54938 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_593/opinion 1) Is a regulation found under a subpart headed "Interpretations" still entitled to be given Chevron deference by the courts? 2) Did the Second Circuit err in holding a Department of Labor regulation unpersuasive and thus undeserving of Skidmore deference? Mon, 11 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54860 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_562/opinion Can a party that is potentially responsible for the cost of cleaning up contaminated property under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) bring an action against another potentially responsible party under Section 107(a), even if the party does not satisfy the requirements for bringing an action for contribution under Section 113(f) of CERCLA? Mon, 11 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54868 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_5247/opinion 1) What standard for determining harmless error applies to habeas cases where the constitutional error is not recognized until the case is appealed to federal court? 2) If the Brecht standard applies, does the defense or the prosecution bear the burden of persuasion on the question of injurious influence? Mon, 11 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54847 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_84/opinion Is a company guilty of a "willful" violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act if it shows "reckless disregard" for the law, even if the company has no actual knowledge that the conduct violates the Act? Mon, 04 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54959 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_413/opinion Did the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit fail to give proper deference to a trial judge's dismissal of a juror on the grounds that he could not carry out the duties of a juror in a capital sentencing case? Mon, 04 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54852 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_531/opinion Can a preliminary injunction that is later reversed be the basis for awarding a party the status of the "prevailing party" and therefore entitling that party to attorney's fees? Mon, 04 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54961 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_5618/opinion 1) Was the District Court's sentence reasonable, even though it fell below the advised minimum in the Federal Sentencing Guidelines? 2) Does the Supreme Court's decision in U.S. v. Booker allow a court to require extraordinary circumstances to justify a sentence which constitutes a substantial variance from the Federal Sentencing Guidelines? Mon, 04 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54969 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1074/opinion Can a plaintiff bring a salary discrimination suit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 when the disparate pay is received during the 180-day statutory limitations period, but is the result of discriminatory pay decisions that occurred outside the limitations period? Tue, 29 May 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54904 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_313/opinion Does a federal Court of Appeals exceed its authority under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 by overturning a death sentence on the ground that the prosecutor's penalty phase closing argument was "unfairly inflammatory"? Mon, 21 May 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54957 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_618/opinion 1) Does the Speech or Debate Clause of the U.S. Constitution bar federal court jurisdiction of suits under the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 by congressional employees whose job duties are part of the due functioning of the legislative process? 2) Was the Office of Senator Mark Dayton entitled to appeal the judgment of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit directly to the Supreme Court? 3) Was the case rendered moot by the expiration of Senator Dayton's term of office? Mon, 21 May 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54916 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_983/opinion In a lawsuit under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), may a non-lawyer parent of a disabled child argue in federal court either on his own behalf ("pro se") or on behalf of his child? Mon, 21 May 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54896 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1126/opinion Can a plaintiff claim a violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act by alleging parallel conduct by defendants amounting to a conspiracy? Mon, 21 May 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54955 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_376/opinion Does Section 6404(h) of the Internal Revenue Code grant the United States Tax Court exclusive jurisdiction to review interest abatement claims made against the Internal Revenue Service? Mon, 21 May 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54949 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1575/opinion 1) Did the Ninth Circuit err by holding that the state court unreasonably determined the facts of the case when it found that Landrigan "instructed his attorney not to present any mitigating evidence at the sentencing hearing"? 2) Was the Ninth Circuit correct to hold that counsel for Landrigan's failure to present mitigating evidence during the sentencing phase rendered him objectively ineffective, even though Landrigan had opposed the admission of the evidence? Mon, 14 May 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54981 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1541/opinion Can a party challenge, under 28 U.S.C. 1346(a)(1), an Internal Revenue Service tax levy on its property intended to collect taxes owed by another party, even if the party could have sued under 26 U.S.C. 7426 but failed to file the suit before the time limit expired? Mon, 30 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54894 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1345/opinion Does an ordinance requiring delivery of all solid waste to a publicly owned local facility impose a substantial burden on interstate commerce and therefore violate the Commerce Clause? Mon, 30 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54924 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_04_1350/opinion Was the Federal Circuit correct in holding that an invention cannot be held "obvious", and thus unpatentable, without a finding of some "teaching, suggestion, or motivation" that would have led a "person of ordinary skill in the art" to the invention by combining previously-existing ideas? Mon, 30 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54882 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1056/opinion 1) Can software code be a component of a patented invention for purposes of the Patent Act? 2) Are copies of software code "supplied from the United States" for purposes of the Patent Act when the copies are created overseas from a master version that is supplied from the United States? Mon, 30 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54947 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1631/opinion 1) Does a police officer who stops a high-speed chase by ramming a fleeing suspect's car violate the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable seizure? 2) Was it "clearly established" in federal law that an officer violates the Fourth Amendment by using deadly force during a high-speed chase? Mon, 30 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54940 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_11284/opinion Do Texas's "special issue" jury instructions for capital sentencing allow jurors to give full consideration and effect to mitigating evidence about a defendant's destructive family background and mental defects, as required by the Eighth Amendment? Wed, 25 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54849 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_11304/opinion 1) Was the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals correct in holding that the improper instruction given to Smith's jury was harmless error and not sufficient to invalidate his death sentence? 2) Was the Texas court correct to require a standard of "egregious harm" when evaluating whether an unconstitutional jury instruction should invalidate a death sentence? Wed, 25 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54884 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_380/opinion Is the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 an unconstitutional violation of personal liberty protected by the Fifth Amendment because the Act lacks an exception for partial-birth abortions necessary to protect the health of the mother? Wed, 18 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54886 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_9264/opinion Does a conviction for attempted burglary qualify as a "violent felony" under the Armed Career Criminal Act? Wed, 18 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54930 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1508/opinion Was the Secretary of Education's regulatory formula for determining whether a state's education funding is equalized among its school districts consistent with 20 U.S.C. Section 7709, the Federal Impact Aid Program? Tue, 17 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54979 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_705/opinion Does Section 201(b) of the Communications Act of 1934 create a private right of action for a payphone service provider to sue a long distance carrier for violations of the FCC's regulations concerning compensation for coinless payphone calls? Tue, 17 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54953 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1342/opinion 1) Is the decision of the Comptroller of Currency that federal authority over national banks extends to state-chartered operating subsidiaries of national banks entitled to judicial deference under Chevron U.S.A. v. Natural Resources Defense Council? 2) Does 12 CFR 7.4006 violate the Tenth Amendment by treating a state- chartered operating subsidiary the same as a national bank for purposes of federal regulation? Tue, 17 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54926 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_848/opinion 1) Did the Fourth Circuit's decision violate the section of the Clean Air Act that provides that national Clean Air Act regulations are subject to challenge only in the D.C. Circuit? 2) Does the Clean Air Act require the EPA to interpret the term "modification" consistently in its Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) provisions and New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) regulations? Mon, 02 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54858 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1120/opinion 1) May the EPA decline to issue emission standards for motor vehicles based on policy considerations not enumerated in the Clean Air Act? 2) Does the Clean Air Act give the EPA authority to regulate carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases? Mon, 02 Apr 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54862 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1272/opinion What kind of "direct and independent" knowledge must an employee bringing suit under the False Claims Act have in order to qualify as an "original source"? Tue, 27 Mar 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54922 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_116/opinion 1) Did the Supreme Court of Guam err in interpreting the phrase "aggregate tax valuation" in the Guam Organic Act to mean the full value of property on Guam rather than the assessed value for the purposes of taxation? 2) Does the time the case was pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals count toward the time limit for seeking Supreme Court review? Tue, 27 Mar 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54870 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1429/opinion Can a litigant in a bankruptcy case involving federal bankruptcy law collect attorneys' fees that are granted by a contract or a state law? Tue, 20 Mar 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54878 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_06_102/opinion Does a district court have to establish its jurisdiction over a case before dismissing the suit on the ground that it should be argued in another court that is more convenient for the parties ("forum non conveniens")? Mon, 05 Mar 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54856 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_595/opinion Is the Court's decision on the admissibility of hearsay testimony in Crawford v. Washington a watershed rule that applies retroactively? Wed, 28 Feb 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54985 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_996/opinion Can the right in Section 706(a) of the Bankruptcy Code to convert a Chapter 7 bankruptcy to another chapter be denied because of bad faith? Wed, 21 Feb 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54971 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1240/opinion When does the statute of limitations for a claim for damages arising out of a false arrest start running when the fruits of the search were introduced in a person's criminal trial and he was convicted? Wed, 21 Feb 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54967 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1256/opinion 1) Can a court's determination that a defendant's conduct was highly reprehensible and analogous to crime override the constitutional requirement that punitive damages must be reasonably related to the harm to the plaintiff? 2) Does due process permit a jury to punish a defendant for the effects of its conduct on non-parties? Tue, 20 Feb 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54872 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_8820/opinion 1) When a defendant facing death has a certiorari petition pending before the United States Supreme Court, does the time the petition is pending count toward the one-year statute of limitations in the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act? 2) Does the division in the Circuit Courts over the statute of limitations constitute an extraordinary circumstance that would allow the Court to set aside the time limit? 3) Does the ineffectiveness of a defendant's counsel constitute an extraordinary circumstance that would allow the Court to set aside the time limit? Tue, 20 Feb 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54975 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_381/opinion Does a plaintiff alleging predatory buying in violation of the Sherman Act need to establish that the defendant paid so much for raw materials that it operated at a loss and the defendant had a "dangerous probability" of recouping its losses? Tue, 20 Feb 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54932 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_593/opinion 1) Does the Westfall Act authorize the Attorney General to certify that an employee was acting within the scope of his employment at the time of an incident by denying that the incident occurred at all? 2) Does the Westfall Act forbid a district court to send a case back to state court after finding that the Attorney General's certification was not authorized by the Act? 3) Do courts of appeals have jurisdiction to review a court's order sending a case back to a state court? Mon, 22 Jan 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54906 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_7058/opinion 1) Does the Prisoner Litigation and Reform Act require that a prisoner bringing a federal civil rights suit show how he exhausted his administrative remedies before suing, rather than requiring that the defense prove that the administrative remedies were not exhausted? 2) Does the Prisoner Litigation and Reform Act require a court to dismiss a prisoner's civil rights suit for failure to exhaust administrative remedies whenever there is a single unexhausted claim, despite the presence of other exhausted claims? From Williams v. Overton: 3) Does the Prisoner Litigation Reform Act require that a prisoner name a particular defendant in his administrative grievance in order to exhaust his administrative remedies as to that defendant and preserve his right to sue? Mon, 22 Jan 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54880 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_6551/opinion Does California's Determinate Sentencing Law violate the 6th Amendment right to a jury trial by permitting judges to impose enhanced sentences based on their determination of facts not found by the jury or admitted by the defendant? Mon, 22 Jan 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54945 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_1629/opinion Does the "theft offense" aggravated felony in the Immigration and Nationality Act include aiding and abetting a theft? Wed, 17 Jan 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54900 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_746/opinion Is the causation standard for employee negligence under the Federal Employers Liability Act different from the causation standard for railroad negligence? Wed, 10 Jan 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54977 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_998/opinion Can the omission of an element of a criminal offense from a federal indictment constitute harmless error? Tue, 09 Jan 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54965 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_608/opinion Does the "actual controversy" requirement of the Declaratory Judgment Act require that a patent licensee break its licensing agreement by refusing to pay royalties before suing to declare a patent invalid and unenforceable? Tue, 09 Jan 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54908 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_9222/opinion 1) Is the holding in Blakely v. Washington a new rule or was it dictated by Apprendi v. New Jersey? 2) If Blakely is a new rule, does its requirement that facts resulting in an enhanced statutory maximum be proved before a jury apply retroactively? Tue, 09 Jan 2007 13:00:00 +0000 54983 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_785/opinion Did the Ninth Circuit exceed its authority under 28 U.S.C. Section 2254(d)(1) when it overturned a murder conviction because the victim's family members appeared in the Courtroom wearing buttons with pictures of the victim? Mon, 11 Dec 2006 13:00:00 +0000 54866 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_669/opinion Does the six-year statute of limitations for government actions for monetary damages in 28 U.S.C. 2415(a) govern the issuance of administrative orders, as opposed to the government's filing of a complaint in court? Mon, 11 Dec 2006 13:00:00 +0000 54910 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_547/opinion Does a drug crime constitute an "aggravated felony" under the Immigration and Naturalization Act if the crime is a felony under state law but only a misdemeanor under federal law? Tue, 05 Dec 2006 13:00:00 +0000 54973 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2006/2006_05_493/opinion 1) Is an "unadorned" factor (k) instruction sufficient to inform a jury that it must consider any mitigating evidence that a defendant may present concerning his probability of rehabilitation and good behavior as a prisoner? 2) Is the Ninth Circuit's ruling that factor (k) is constitutionally inadequate a "new constitutional rule of criminal procedure," in which case it would not be applied retroactively to other defendants whose cases are already final? Mon, 13 Nov 2006 13:00:00 +0000 54888 at http://www.oyez.org