The U.S. Supreme Court, which had no choice but to postpone highly anticipated cases back in March due to the spiraling out of control pandemic, announced on Monday that there will be oral arguments in May—by phone.
This is a first. As you can see from the cases listed (and bolded) below, cases on President Donald Trump’s tax returns and even faithless electors cases will be on the SCOTUS teleconference menu:
18-9526, McGirt v. Oklahoma19-46, United States Patent and Trademark Office v. Booking.com B.V.19-177, Agency for International Development v. Alliance for Open Society International, Inc.19-267, Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, and 19-348, St. James School v. Biel19-431, Little Sisters of the Poor Saints Peter and Paul Home v. Pennsylvania, and 19-454,Trump v. Pennsylvania19-465, Chiafalo v. Washington19-518, Colorado Department of State v. Baca19-631, Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants, Inc.19-635, Trump v. Vance19-715, Trump v. Mazars USA, LLP, and 19-760, Trump v. Deutsche Bank AG
According to press release from the Supreme Court’s Office of Public Information, teleconferences will occur on May 4, 5, 6, 11, 12 and 13.
The Supreme Court has been closed to the public since March 12. That continues to be the case. While the court is open for official business, the justices will work remotely.
“In keeping with public health guidance in response to COVID-19, the Justices and counsel will all participate remotely,” the press release said. “The Court anticipates providing a live audio feed of these arguments to news media. Details will be shared as they become available.”
Exact dates for oral arguments will be set when lawyers confirm their availability.
Legal observers were intrigued.
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