FedSoc Forums

The Supreme Court's decision in Collins v. Yellen represented a paradigm shift. Now, in cases involving claims that an agency official is unconstitutionally insulated from removal by the President, litigants can face an uphill climb to obtain meaningful relief. This state of affairs arguably has a serious impact on the incentive to bring these kinds of lawsuits going forward. This webinar will dis...

In August 2024, a federal district court held that Google possesses monopolistic power over “general search” and “general search text advertising,” which Google illegally maintained through exclusive agreements. The DOJ has suggested a range of possible remedies, including possible divestitures, while Google counters that the suggested remedies are “wildly interventio...

As China deepens its presence in Latin America by owning nearly 40 ports—including a new mega port in Peru—and establishing intelligence posts in Cuba, U.S. policymakers face growing concerns over regional influence. Twenty-two Latin American countries have joined China's Belt and Road Initiative, amplifying Beijing's strategic foothold. Meanwhile, security threats persist clos...

The Supreme Court is set to hear argument this term in a case raising both the nondelegation and private nondelegation doctrines. On July 24, 2024, the en banc Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the federal Universal Service Fund (“USF”), which funds broadband service for rural areas and hospitals, schools, libraries, and low-income individuals, is an unconstitutional delegation...

E.M.D. Sales, Inc. v. Carrera concerns what standard of evidence the court should apply in cases of exceptions to the Fair Labor Standards Act. The District Court decided that E.M.D. was liable for some employee overtime because it did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that its sales representatives were outside salesmen. Therefore, they were not exempt from normal overtime rules. The Fou...

In Barnes v. Felix the Supreme Court is set to address a circuit split concerning the context courts should consider when evaluating an excessive force claim brought under the Fourth Amendment. Is the correct rubric the "moment of threat" doctrine (which was applied by the Fifth Circuit here and has been adopted by several other circuits including the Second, Fourth, and Eighth), which considers o...

How should podcasters talk about crime in a way that informs the public while respecting the legal process and the rights of everyone involved? This question has taken on unprecedented importance now that anyone can become a citizen journalist by using nothing more expensive than a computer and cellphone. Join us for a conversation exploring the issue with two veteran true crime podcasters, modera...

Last month, the last American troops left Niger, following withdrawal of U.S. troops in Chad last spring and from Somalia in 2021. Talks are underway for revived U.S. presence in Chad, as happened in Somalia in 2022, but there seems to be a larger trend toward disengagement. Does this foretell enhanced Chinese influence? A greater role for Russian intrigues? Or a larger role for terrorist networks...

Institutions of higher education released demographic data for their first classes admitted after the Supreme Court's landmark decision Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College held that the Constitution prohibits the use of race as a "bonus" in admissions decisions. The demographic data reflect a variety of admissions policy changes. Four new voices in civil rights...

In TikTok, Inc. v. Garland, the Court was asked to consider whether the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, as applied to petitioners, violates the First Amendment. The PAFACA requires that TikTok either cease operations in the United States or have its parent company ByteDance sell off the American segment of the company by January 19, 2025. Petitioners challe...

Our liberty, safety, and prosperity are based on the rule of law, not the rule of man or machine. However, given that the criminal justice system suffers from many efficiencies and errors, could artificial intelligence aid the efforts of police, prosecutors, and other actors tasked with protecting public safety with limited resources? Given the power of A.I. technologies to find proverbial needles...

Free Speech Coalition, Inc. v. Paxton concerns Texas Law H.B. 1181, and what precedent should apply in considering its impact on free speech. Passed in 2023, the law requires commercial entities, including social media platforms, "that knowingly and intentionally publish or distribute material on an Internet website... more than one-third of which is sexual material harmful to minors" to age-gate...

Immigration is a spotlight issue, especially heading into the next administration. Some say the United States is under attack—that the entrance of millions of immigrants, some of whom intend to and do cause harm to Americans, constitutes an “invasion” or "predatory incursion" of the sort mentioned in Article I of the Constitution and the Alien Enemies Act (AEA). Others contend, h...

In TikTok, Inc. v. Garland (consolidated with Firebaugh v. Garland) the Court is set to consider whether the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA)(enacted by Congress in April 2024), as applied to petitioners, violates the First Amendment. Put forward as a law focused on national security, PAFACA would require that TikTok either cease operations in the Un...

Lawless uses the author, Ilya Shapiro’s, “lived experience” with Georgetown as a jumping-off point to discuss what he describes as the warping of legal education and the legal profession. He argues that law schools used to teach students how to think critically, advance logical arguments, and respect opponents. Now they produce lawyers who can’t tolerate disagreement and re...

Each month, a panel of constitutional experts convenes to discuss the Court’s upcoming docket sitting by sitting. The cases covered in this preview are listed below. TikTok, Inc. v. Garland (January 10) - First Amendment, National Security; Issue(s): Whether the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, as applied to petitioners, violates the First Amendment. H...

In August of 2024, the state of Utah filed suit against the United States contesting the ownership of certain lands in Utah. When asking the United States Supreme Court to exercise its original jurisdiction, Utah argues that the federal government lacks constitutional authority to retain perpetual ownership of 18.5 million acres of land in Utah that the Bureau of Land Management currently manages....

Alpine Securities Corp. v. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“Alpine’) raises a challenge to the constitutionality of the structure and regulatory authority of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Alpine Securities, a brokerage firm, argues that the structure of FINRA violates the U.S. Constitu...

Federal civil rights enforcement in the employment area is handled by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC,) the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP,) and the Department of Justice (DOJ.) This webinar will explore efforts to coordinate enforcement by the three agencies and look at ways to avoid duplication of efforts to streamline and strengthen civil rights and equa...

In the wake of the October 7, 2023 terrorist attack in Israel, there have been reports of discrimination against Jewish students at prominent American colleges and universities. This panel will discuss the nature of the legal remedies that may be available, their likelihood of success, and any possible downsides that might accompany their use. Featuring: Dr. Mark Goldfeder, Esq., CEO and Director,...

On December 9, the Supreme Court denied certiorari in Boston Parent Coalition for Academic Excellence v. The School Committee for the City of Boston. The case involved an equal protection challenge to a change in admissions policy in Boston, where a competitive public school altered its admissions criteria in a manner that reduced the number of Asian and Caucasian students. The lower courts reject...

This case concerns the question of whether the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires an agency to study environmental impacts beyond the proximate effects of the action over which the agency has regulatory authority. When the Surface Transportation Board granted a petition from the Seven County Infrastructure Coalition to construct and operate an 80-mile Utah railway, they conducted an...

In the last several years, numerous minors who identify as transgender have undergone surgery and other medical procedures to mirror common physical features of the opposite sex. In March 2023, Tennessee enacted Senate Bill 1, which prohibits medical procedures for the purpose of either (1) enabling a minor to identify with, or live as, a purported identity inconsistent with the minor’s sex,...

Bethesda University, a private Christian university founded around Pentecostal theology, faced an internal leadership dispute, as the president persuaded the board to appoint non-Pentecostal members to the board of directors. The rest of the leadership objected and fired President Cho, arguing that only Pentecostals could serve on the board of directors. The former President and the California Cou...

There have been significant changes in federal AI policy over the course of the first term of the Trump administration and Biden administration that present a major inflection point for President-elect Trump as he prepares for his second term in office. This panel will delve into the differing doctrinal and policy frameworks for executive branch and congressional AI policy to map out how this tran...