“In Trump’s Washington, Prosecutors Can’t Count on Grand Juries to Take Their Side; In the past two weeks, prosecutors in the capital have failed to secure indictments in at least three cases, an acceleration of the problems the Justice Department has had with grand juries”: Alan Feuer and Michael S. Schmidt of The New York Times have this report.

“The Supreme Court could deal a death blow to civil rights precedent”: Law professor Erwin Chemerinsky has this essay online at The Los Angeles Times.

“NC Supreme Court to hear Stein’s challenge of laws limiting his appointment power”: Kyle Ingram of The News & Observer of Raleigh, North Carolina has this report.

“Not With a Bang, But a Whimper: Officials Leave the Justice Department”: Joyce Vance has this post at her “Civil Discourse” Substack site.

“Zoo Elephants Have a Right to Liberty, Group Tells Hawaii’s Top Court; At a private school that counts Barack Obama as an alumnus, the State Supreme Court heard arguments about whether two elephants in the Honolulu Zoo should be released to an animal sanctuary”: Jennifer Sinco Kelleher of The New York Times has this report.

Michael Brestovansky of Aloha State Daily reports that “Elephant rights go to Hawai‘i Supreme Court; Hundreds in attendance in case over whether Honolulu Zoo elephants Mari and Vaigai are entitled to human rights.”

And in commentary, online at The Los Angeles Times, Athar Minallah and law professor Kristen Stilt have an essay titled “Why captive elephants deserve their day in court.”

“Trump’s Supreme Court majority faces looming threat after Dem Senate takeover: ‘Stuck’; Justices Thomas and Alito, both in their late 70s, face pressure over whether to retire before Republicans lose control.” Ashley J. DiMella of Fox News has this report.

And in commentary, online at Bloomberg Opinion, law professor Stephen L. Carter has an essay titled “Alito’s Retirement Plans Are His to Make.”

“A new Supreme Court justice signed the petition to repeal Prop 4; Now the plaintiffs want him off their case; Lawyers argue Justice Michael Menssen’s signature on the repeal initiative creates an appearance of bias, say he should step aside”: Robert Gehrke of The Salt Lake Tribune has this report.

“Back to the Future: The U.S. Court for Berlin’s Lessons for the ATRC; A half-century ago, the United States brought to life a moribund court in West Berlin; that experience provides lessons for today’s ATRC.” Aaron S.J. Zelinsky has this post at the “Lawfare” blog.

“Guantanamo Dispatches: Military Judge Accepts First U.S. Navy Officer on Jury in USS Cole Bombing Case.” Carol Rosenberg has this post at the “Just Security” blog.

“Supreme Court Allows Construction of Trump’s Border Wall in Big Bend; Despite its win, the administration signaled it had adjusted construction plans in the national park with an aim to ‘preserving the unique landscape and public access’”: Abbie VanSickle of The New York Times has this report.

Justin Jouvenal, Jake Spring, and Julian Mark of The Washington Post report that “Supreme Court allows major part of Trump’s border security project in Texas; The more than 500-mile stretch of road, cameras, vehicle barriers and sensors is planned in and around Big Bend National Park; It is one of the longest and most controversial sections.”

James Romoser of The Wall Street Journal reports that “Supreme Court Lets Trump Administration Build Border Wall in Big Bend; Project had been halted during legal challenge over impact on Texas border region.”

And Kelsey Reichmann of Courthouse News Service has an article headlined “Yielding to Trump, Supreme Court bulldozes barriers to Big Bend border wall; The Trump administration has rushed to erect a border wall across the pristine wilderness area despite having the lowest apprehension rates anywhere on the southern border.”

You can access today’s decision of the U.S. Supreme Court at this link.

“Senate Republicans Are Sprinting to Confirm Trump Judges While They Still Can; The lame duck is the GOP’s last opportunity to stack the federal bench with MAGA loyalists”: JP Collins has this essay online at Balls and Strikes.

“Supreme Court seems likely to limit prisoners’ ability to sue over claims of poor medical care; The justices did not seem ready to overturn a 1971 precedent that let individuals harmed by federal officers in violation of their constitutional rights sue for monetary damages”: Justin Jouvenal of The Washington Post has this report.

And Kelsey Reichmann of Courthouse News Service reports that “Justices look to limit lawsuits against federal prison officials; With precedent on the outs, the justices seemed to steer lawsuits against federal officials through legislative pathways.”

“Court limits California rules on companies’ greenhouse-gas disclosures”: Bob Egelko of The San Francisco Chronicle has this report.

Jonathan Stempel of Reuters reports that “Court blocks California from enforcing climate disclosure laws.”

And Edvard Pettersson of Courthouse News Service reports that “Ninth Circuit curtails California greenhouse gas disclosure laws; The appellate court agreed with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that the laws in part amounted to compelled speech that wasn’t merited by California’s interest in reducing emissions.”

You can access today’s decision of a partially divided three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit at this link.

“Will the Blue Wave Come for SCOTUS?” You can access today’s new episode of the “Strict Scrutiny” podcast via this link and on YouTube.

“Texas’ Flip to Blue Is Major Blow to Red States’ Legal Fights”: Jacqueline Thomsen, Alex Ebert, and Jordan Fischer of Bloomberg Law have this report.

“Protecting a Supreme Court Landmark; The government wants exceptions to the right to redress in federal courts in Department of Labor v. Sun Valley Orchards”: This editorial appears in today’s edition of The Wall Street Journal.

“Why Colorado Is at the Epicenter of So Many Supreme Court Clashes; In three recent cases, the conservative-dominated bench has ruled against the state and in favor of the rights of Christian business owners”: Ann E. Marimow of The New York Times has this report.

“Arkansas GOP Senators Poised to Sink Trump Appeals Court Nominee”: Olivia Alafriz of Bloomberg Law has this report.

“Trump seeks to install Elliot Gaiser into a lifetime judgeship in Texas; Gaiser’s nomination process began five days ago; This is not normal”: Patrick McNeil has this post at his “Nomination Notes” Substack site.

And in news coverage, Olivia Alafriz and Celine Castronuovo of Bloomberg Law report that “DOJ Lawyer Gets Nod for Texas Court in Late Judicial Push.”

“262. Sports Bets, Swaps, and the Kalshi Mess: Kalshi claims that it’s exempt from state gambling laws because its sports contracts are federal ‘swaps’; Three circuits have already divided, and the Supreme Court will soon have to step in.” Steve Vladeck has this post at his “One First” Substack site.

“Pardon-Proof Accountability; Job One: Get the money back.” You can access the new episode of Slate’s “Amicus” podcast via this link.

“Judicial Notice (11.08.26): Elections Have Consequences; A fired Sidley associate headed to Congress, four new Democrats on the Texas Supreme Court, and 40 Weil refugees bound for Kirkland.” David Lat has this post at his “Original Jurisdiction” Substack site.

“Stephen Miller and the Roy Cohn Presidency; It is not likely to end well”: Bob Bauer has this post at the “Executive Functions” Substack site.

“Defeated Republicans Return to Washington With 55 Days Left and a Long Wish List; Hegseth’s fate, judicial confirmations, military spending, leadership elections on agenda”: Richard Rubin and Lindsay Wise of The Wall Street Journal have this report.

And in commentary, Monday’s edition of The Wall Street Journal will contain an editorial titled “Needed: a Lame Duck Congress That Isn’t Lame; The GOP may have its last chance in years to pass its priorities.”

“Justice Dept. Mulled Naming The Times as Conspirator in Comey Leak Case; It remains unclear how the Justice Department might proceed; The move would be a major escalation of the Trump administration’s recent attacks against the news media”: Alan Feuer of The New York Times has this report.

“Supreme Court case could end lawsuits against federal agents like ICE; In recent decades, the high court has severely limited the ability to sue a federal officer for constitutional violations; The justices could completely close the door”: Maureen Groppe of USA Today has this report.

“Democracy Needs Room for Religious Difference”: Law professor Stephen L. Carter has this essay online at Bloomberg Opinion.

“Trump’s D.C. Construction Blitz May Be About to Get Tougher; The president has bulldozed through obstacles as he has sought to remake the face of Washington; But newly empowered Democrats and angry judges are setting up a high-stakes showdown”: Luke Broadwater and Emily Badger of The New York Times have this report.

“Democratic attorney general wins could reshape US lawsuits on abortion, immigration and more”: Mike Scarcella and Daniel Wiessner of Reuters have this report.

“For Trump and America, a Clear Election Verdict Leaves a Murky Future; As Americans absorb a stunning new political reality, they face a gap between the time they effectively decided to be done with the president and the time he is actually done”: Peter Baker of The New York Times has this news analysis.

“Breaking the Decade-Long Trump Fever; The President’s unique brand of lurid authoritarianism has finally lost appeal, and he has lost the plot”: David Remnick has this essay online at The New Yorker.

“Montana GOP, Conservative Groups Challenge New Dark Money Ban”: Mike Leonard of Bloomberg Law has this report.

“The Texas Supreme Court will have a female majority for the first time; A majority of justices on the Texas Supreme Court will be women for the first time ever, including the chief justice”: Dylan Duke of KERA has this report.

“A ‘reverse-Ginsburg’ scenario could flip the Supreme Court without packing”: Law professor Jonathan Turley has this essay online at The Hill.

“Supreme Court’s trend on church and state is a reminder conservatives have a steady grip on the nation’s laws”: Joan Biskupic of CNN has this news analysis.