Moritz Legal Information Blog

Today is the day anticipated by many: the Supreme Court has issued its opinion on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare").  The SCOTUSblog live feed saw well over 500,000 readers at the time the decision was issued. Without further ado, the opinion is here . Here is a quote from Amy Howe at SCOTUSblog, via the liveblog: In Plain English: The Affordable Care Act, including its individual mandate that virtually all Americans buy health insurance, is constitutional. There were not five votes to uphold it on the ground that Congress could use its power to regulate commerce between the states to require everyone to buy health insurance. However, five Justices agreed that the penalty that someone must pay if he refuses to buy insurance is a kind of tax that Congress can impose using its taxing power. That is all that matters. Because the mandate survives, the Court did not need to decide what other parts of the statute were constitutional, except for a p

Forbes has posted an interesting article on the evolution of SCOTUSblog , probably the best source for up-to-date information on activity in the U.S. Supreme Court. This year marks the site's 10th in existence. Nearly 100,000 users tuned in to its live blog on Monday, in anticipation of the Court's health care ruling. More likely will tune in tomorrow. See Robert Ambrogi's Lawsites for more on SCOTUSblog's success.

Last week , we posted about the final days of the Jerry Sandusky trial.  On Friday evening, after two days (21 hours) of deliberation, the jury found Sandusky guilty of 45 out of the 48 charges. Details of the charges can be found at CNN . Sandusky will be sentenced sometime within the next several months, and is currently being held at the Centre County Jail. More news and commentary: CBS Pittsburgh Washington Post Huffington Post Boston Herald ABC News

The U.S. Supreme Court issued several significant opinions today, though not the much-anticipated health care opinion, which is now expected Thursday. In addition to striking down (5-3 with Justice Kagan recusing) much of Arizona's controversial immigration law, the court ruled (5-4) that mandatory life without the possibility for parole sentences are unconstitutional for juveniles. As we have noted previously, Moritz Professor Doug Berman and some of his students submitted an amicus brief in the juvenile sentencing case. Check Professor Berman's Sentencing Law and Policy blog for his preliminary thoughts on the opinion. Also see initial analysis of the Arizona immigration case and the juvenile sentencing case on SCOTUSblog.

Fittingly, the arrival of summer brings news of vacation litigation. The Columbus Dispatch reports on a new decision from the Court of Justice of the European Union.  In short, the Court of Justice ruled that workers who get sick on vacation are entitled to an extension of their vacation. For more details, read a press release from the Court of Justice and the judgment of the Court.

While the Supreme Court issued four more opinions today, none was the much-anticipated health care ruling. In other high-profile legal news, closing arguments began today in the trial of former Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky.  Prior to closing arguments, Judge John Cleland dismissed three charges against Sandusky: two because they were unsupported by evidence, one because it was identical to another charge.  Sandusky now faces 48 charges. The defense rested yesterday; Sandusky did not take the stand. CNN Time Bloomberg News Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Senators Patrick Leahy (D) and Charles Grassley (R) recently sent a letter to U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, urging the Court to consider a live television broadcast of the delivery of its health care decision. According to the senators, permitting a live television broadcast would "bolster public confidence in our judicial system and in the decisions of the Court." A coalition of news organizations previously sent a letter  containing a similar request for live audio access to the announcement of the decision. The court did not grant requests by C-SPAN and Senator Grassley for live television coverage of the health care oral arguments in March. A decision from the court on the merits of the case is expected by the end of this month.

The Supreme Court issued opinions in four cases yesterday, though none was the much-anticipated health care ruling. At the convention of the American Constitution Society on Friday, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg spoke of the current "flood season" at the Court, and attempted to challenge her reputation as "least funny" Justice (from a study measuring the laughter provoked by each Justice during oral argument). Justice Ginsburg also said, "It is likely that the sharp disagreement rate will go up next week or the week after," and spoke of the value of dissents in causing systemic change, as with the Lilly Ledbetter Equal Pay Act. Complete remarks are here . CNN Wall Street Journal Law Blog

In a bipartisan effort to help Ohioans with criminal records to find jobs (and thus avoid recidivism), the Senate and House have passed the "collateral sanctions" bill, which reduces the number of post-conviction sanctions offenders face, including being ineligible for certain occupational licenses. The bill will affect almost 2 million Ohioans and is expected to be signed by Gov. Kasich. S.B. 337 H.B. 524 Columbus Dispatch Dayton Daily News

Catherine Grieg, girlfriend of James "Whitey" Bulger, was sentenced to eight years in prison today, for identity fraud and harboring a fugitive.  The couple lived for sixteen years in Santa Monica before their capture in June 2011.  Bulger faces murder and racketeering charges.  Trial is set for November of this year. CNN Los Angeles Times Sentencing Law and Policy

The U.S. Senate recently confirmed Jeffrey Helmick, a Toledo attorney and Moritz grad, as a judge for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. President Obama nominated Helmick a little over a year ago. See coverage in the Toledo Blade and a record of the confirmation vote at govtrack.us and the U.S. Senate website .

While it still fares much better than the legislative branch , a recent New York Times/CBS News poll indicated that the U.S. Supreme Court's popular approval rating has dipped to 44 percent. According to a New York Times  article about the poll, the court's rating has declined over the past quarter-century from a high of 66 percent in the late 1980s. Predictably, many of the comments to the article reference Citizens United .

We have written in the past about the exotic animals legislation that was introduced in the wake of the Zanesville tragedy last October, in which dozens of wild animals were let loose before their owner committed suicide. On Tuesday, Gov. Kasich signed the bill into law.  It will take effect 90 days from signing. Columbus Dispatch Mansfield News Journal The Human Society

Fred Shapiro and Michelle Pearse, law librarians at Yale and Harvard, respectively, have published a study of the most-cited law review articles of all time .  Published in the Michigan Law Review , the study lists the top 100 articles by number of citations.  The top five are: 1.  R.H. Coase, The Problem of Social Cost, 3 J.L. & Econ. 1 (1960). 2.  Samuel D. Warren & Louis D. Brandeis, The Right to Privacy, 4 Harv. L. Rev. 193 (1890). 3.  3138 O.W. Holmes, The Path of the Law, 10 Harv. L. Rev. 457 (1897). 4.  Gerald Gunther, The Supreme Court, 1971 Term—Foreword: In Search of Evolving Doctrine on a Changing Court: A Model for a Newer Equal Protection, 86 Harv. L. Rev. 1 (1972). 5.  Herbert Wechsler, Toward Neutral Principles of Constitutional Law, 73 Harv. L. Rev. 1 (1959). More on the newest entry in the field of "citology": Wall Street Journal ABA Journal

The Ohio State University Archives has made available online the text of many of the university  commencement addresses over the years. Some of the speakers have Moritz College of Law connections, including distinguished alumni William B. Saxbe  (1975 speech), Robert M. Duncan  (1979 speech), and Yvette McGee Brown (2009 speech), as well as current Moritz College of Law professor Deborah Jones Merritt (2004 speech). Browse the lists for former U.S. Presidents and other well-known figures such as one Elwood Gordon Gee ( 1991 and 1997 speeches).