In recent years, pursuant to Supreme Court precedent, the definition of public corruption has progressively narrowed while the scope of governmental immunity has been enlarged. There are two ongoing public corruption prosecutions that will likely be taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court in the coming terms and that will likely test these recent trends.

In United States v. Benjamin, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit added to a circuit split concerning whether a quid pro quo must be explicit when the alleged bribe is a campaign contribution to an elected official in order to avoid significant First Amendment concerns. In United States v. Menendez, the trial court limited the immunity afforded by the speech or debate clause, permitting prosecutors to bring certain claims and introduce certain evidence in their recent prosecution of former Sen. Robert Menendez. This article will discuss these two cases and the likely appellate issues that will emerge.