On Monday, June 11, the Supreme Court granted two new cases and issued two new opinions.
Cert Granted
Amgen Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds, 660 F.3d 1170 (9th Cir. 2011).
The issues before the Court include: (1) Whether, in a misrepresentation case under Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 10b-5, the district court must require proof of materiality before certifying a plaintiff class based on the fraud-on-the-market theory; and (2) whether, in such a case, the district court must allow the defendant to present evidence rebutting the applicability of the fraud-on-the-market theory before certifying a plaintiff class based on that theory. Justice Breyer has recused himself from the case.
Evans v. Michigan, 810 N.W.2d 535 (Mich. 2012).
The Court will consider whether the Double Jeopardy Clause bars retrial after the trial judge erroneously holds a particular fact to be an element of the offense and then grants a midtrial directed verdict of acquittal because the prosecution failed to prove that fact.
Opinions
Elgin v. Department of Treasury
In an opinion written by Justice Thomas, the Court affirmed the decision of the First Circuit. It held that the Civil Service Reform Act, which established a “comprehensive system for reviewing personnel action taken against federal employees,” provides the exclusive avenue to judicial review when a qualifying employee challenges an adverse employment action by arguing that a federal statute is unconstitutional. Chief Justice Roberts, and Justices Scalia, Kennedy, Breyer, and Sotomayor joined the Court’s opinion. Justice Alito filed a dissenting opinion, which was joined by Justices Ginsburg and Kagan.
Parker v. Matthews
The Court summarily reversed the decision of the Sixth Circuit. In a per curiam opinion, the Court held that the Sixth Circuit’s decision, which set aside two twenty-nine-year-old murder convictions, is a textbook example of what the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA) proscribes: “using federal habeas corpus review as a vehicle to second-guess the reasonable decisions of state courts.”
Information and summaries provided courtesy of SCOTUSBlog.
Kali Borkoski, Details on today’s orders and opinions, SCOTUSblog (Jun. 11, 2012, 10:55 AM),
http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/details-on-todays-orders-and-opinions-8/
