Jesse J Holland

October 05, 2005 | Law.com

While senior Sen. Orrin Hatch offered unconditional support Tuesday to Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers, the conservative National Review called the nomination a "missed opportunity." Facing criticism from conservatives disappointed by his father's choice of Justice David Souter, who has become one of the most liberal members of the Court, President Bush insisted Tuesday that Miers was a strict constructionist and a conservative who would stay that way.

By Jesse J. Holland

5 minute read

November 19, 2004 | The Legal Intelligencer

Sen. Arlen Specter yesterday won the support of the Senate Judiciary Committee's Republicans to be their chairman next year, surviving complaints from abortion opponents who lobbied to skip over him in favor of a conservative.

By Jesse J. Holland

3 minute read

March 03, 2009 | National Law Journal

High school football coach Marcus Borden used to bow his head and drop to one knee when his team prayed. But the Supreme Court ended that tradition on Monday when the justices refused to reconsider a 3rd Circuit decision that upheld a school district ban on employees joining a student-led prayer. The decision on the case from New Jersey could add another restriction on prayer in schools, advocates on both sides said.

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read

February 04, 2005 | Law.com

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read

April 07, 2005 | Law.com

Concerned about recent attacks, federal judges urged Congress Wednesday to provide them with more protection, including increased services by U.S. marshals and $12 million for home security systems. The request by the Judicial Conference of the United States follows the February murder of a federal judge's family in Chicago, the March courtroom shooting deaths in Atlanta and some critics' emotional comments after judges refused to order the reinsertion of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube.

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read

April 20, 2005 | Law.com

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said Tuesday he plans to move forward with his legislation aimed at ending asbestos liability lawsuits in exchange for a $140 billion victims trust fund. But several committee Republicans said they have concerns that must be addressed before they throw their support behind the bill. "This is too important to give up," said Sen. John Cornyn of Texas. "Certainly there will be trade-offs, but right now we're not there."

By Jesse J. Holland

3 minute read

August 12, 2005 | Law.com

Supreme Court nominee John Roberts advised then-high court nominee Sandra Day O'Connor in 1981 to stand firm in her insistence not to talk about specific cases like Roe v. Wade, saying it could bring up impropriety and possibly disqualification issues. Documents released Thursday revealed that Roberts -- then special assistant to the AG -- wrote O'Connor to rebut a professor's memo arguing that senators can only determine a nominee's views by asking specific questions about specific cases.

By Jesse J. Holland

3 minute read

April 18, 2011 | Corporate Counsel

The Supreme Court on Monday heard arguments from Microsoft asking it to overturn a $290 million patent infringement judgment against the world's largest software maker, a ruling that could have a profound effect on how corporations protect and profit from their future inventions.

By Jesse J. Holland

3 minute read

April 07, 2005 | The Legal Intelligencer

Congressional Democrats on Tuesday said Republican criticism of the federal courts following Terri Schiavo's death showed an arrogancy of power that is leading to a Senate confrontation over filibusters of President Bush's judicial nominees.

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read

October 20, 2005 | Law.com

The senators in charge of Harriet Miers' confirmation, Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., and Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., are demanding more information from Miers before her hearings begin, with Leahy describing the Supreme Court nominee's answers so far as "incomplete to insulting." Though the two senators agreed Wednesday to begin the hearings on Nov. 7, they said Republican as well as Democratic committee members felt Miers had not said enough in her questionnaire replies.

By Jesse J. Holland

5 minute read