lone dissent: Preston v. Ferrer
Justice Thomas wrote the term’s second lone dissent: a terse 1-page statement where he reiterates his apparently long-held view that the FAA (Federal Arbitration Act) “does not apply to proceedings in state courts.”
lone dissent: Riegel v. Medtronic
Justice Ginsburg is October Term 2007’s first lone dissenter. Her dissent was 14 pages, compared to the Court’s 20-page opinion and Justice Stevens’ 3-page concurrence. Stevens’ was clearly sympathetic to Ginsburg’s “persuasive explanation” that Congress had intended to provide more more, not less, protections to consumers, but ultimately he was compelled by Medtronic v. Lohr and Cipollone v. Liggett Group to conclude that federal requirements can preempt certain causes-of-action.
No lone dissents in the 2007 Term so far
As of today, January 21, 2008 (Martin Luther King Day), the Court has issued 13 opinions in the 2007 Term, and there have been no lone dissents.
The “loneliest” dissent of the term so far has been Allen v. Siebert (Stevens, joined by Ginsburg).
oral argument: Goldberg v. Kelly
Here’s an audio clip of the exchange between Justice Thurgood Marshall and the attorney for New York, Mr. Laughlin, in Goldberg v. Kelly, 397 U.S. 254 (1970), argued on Monday, October 13, 1969.
Click the small speaker icon next to the link to play the clip.
“Is that what you consider Due Process…”
[Complete audio and clipping services provided by Oyez]
[A copy of the official Court transcript is not currently available online, but it should be part of the UPA microfiche collection, as all cases were transcribed beginning with the 1968 term. Note that prior to 1968, cases were not regularly transcribed, but since audio recordings exist from 1955 onward, UPA used those tapes to create transcripts for roughly 1/3 of all cases from 1955 to 1968. Prior to the 1955 term, there are no recordings, and transcripts were made on a rare case-by-case basis.]
oral argument: West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrish
[The following account is from The United States Law Week, December 1936. I'm unaware of any transcripts of the oral arguments in this case.]
Power to Fix Minimum Wages Again Argued
The validity of minimum wage legislation was argued once more before the Supreme Court of the United States last week. At issue was the Minimum Wage Law for Women of the State of Washington, enacted in 1913. Continue Reading »