Jesse J Holland

September 29, 2005 | National Law Journal

By a vote of 78-22, the Senate confirmed John Roberts Jr. as the 17th chief justice of the United States today. He replaces the late Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, for whom he served as a clerk. Roberts is the first new Supreme Court justice since 1994. A swearing-in ceremony will take place today at the White House so Roberts can take his seat in time for the first arguments of the 2005-2006 Court term on Monday.

By Jesse J. Holland

6 minute read

July 01, 2005 | National Law Journal

Lawmakers are trying to blunt the Supreme Court's Kelo v. City of New London decision, which says local governments can seize people's homes to make way for shopping malls and other private development. Legislation in the works would ban the use of federal funds for any project getting the go-ahead using the ruling. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay said Thursday the high court had made "a horrible decision" and he hoped it would cause a backlash.

By Jesse J. Holland

3 minute read

August 30, 2005 | Law.com

Democrats plan to question Supreme Court nominee John Roberts about a disavowed Justice Department memo from 2002 that critics say led to torture in foreign prisons, top Senate Judiciary Democrat Patrick Leahy said Monday. Leahy gave Roberts a copy of the so-called "Bybee memo" at a meeting Monday so he would be prepared for questions at his confirmation hearings, which start Sept. 6. "I don't think a Supreme Court hearing is a game of gotcha," Leahy said. "I'd really like to know what he thinks."

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read

January 17, 2006 | National Law Journal

Democrats confirmed Friday that they will make a last-ditch attempt to slow Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito's momentum by delaying the first vote on his candidacy. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said that unnamed Democrats will "exercise their rights" to put off this week's scheduled Alito vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada has called on party members to hold off making a decision until after a Wednesday meeting.

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read

July 01, 2005 | Law.com

Lawmakers are trying to blunt the Supreme Court's Kelo v. City of New London decision, which says local governments can seize people's homes to make way for shopping malls and other private development. Legislation in the works would ban the use of federal funds for any project getting the go-ahead using the ruling. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay said Thursday the high court had made "a horrible decision" and he hoped it would cause a backlash.

By Jesse J. Holland

3 minute read

October 26, 2005 | National Law Journal

In a sign of the ongoing battle over Harriet Miers' Supreme Court chances, a conservative group opposing Miers announced plans Tuesday to broadcast a TV ad calling for President Bush to withdraw her nomination. Miers is expected to give answers today to a second questionnaire crafted by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Several senators on the committee have criticized Miers' responses to the first questionnaire as vague and incomplete.

By Jesse J. Holland

3 minute read

June 24, 2005 | National Law Journal

Senate Democrats, in a letter sent to the White House Thursday, urged President Bush to consult with them on a possible Supreme Court nomination to help avoid the controversy that engulfed his lower court picks. White House officials say the president would listen to the Senate's views if a vacancy occurred, but that the president alone would select his nominee. Republicans responded that Democrats are trying to politicize the nomination process before it begins.

By Jesse J. Holland

3 minute read

September 01, 2005 | National Law Journal

Supreme Court nominee John Roberts took shots at Congress while a Reagan administration lawyer, saying in documents released Wednesday that a congressman killed in connection with cult leader Jim Jones' massacre could be viewed as a "publicity hound" and that what Congress does best is "nothing." National Archives officials announced Tuesday the discovery of "a large volume" of unreviewed and unreleased Roberts documents, and at least one file of Roberts papers on affirmative action has gone missing.

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read

November 11, 2005 | Law.com

Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito said Thursday he was "unduly restrictive" in promising in 1990 to avoid appeals cases involving two investment firms and said he has not made any rulings in which he had a "legal or ethical obligation" to step aside. Alito issued a letter to Sen. Arlen Specter, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, after all eight Democrats on the committee called for records involving a 2002 case in which Vanguard was a defendant, raising possible conflict of interest concerns.

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read

March 18, 2005 | Law.com

In a 10-8 vote, the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday sent to the full Senate President Bush's nomination of William Myers to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Democrats, critical of Myers' views on the environment, blocked his nomination during the last Congress. Republicans have threatened to change Senate rules to prevent similar actions, a move that some call the "nuclear option" because they say it would blow up Senate relations.

By Jesse J. Holland

4 minute read