“Women will make up majority of Kentucky Supreme Court for first time”: McKenna Horsley of Kentucky Lantern has this report.

“Amid talk of Jan. 6 pardons, a judge in D.C. defends the court’s work; A U.S. judge defended the justice system’s handling of Capitol riot cases, while acknowledging prosecutions may be halted with Donald Trump’s election”: Spencer S. Hsu of The Washington Post has this report.

“Trump’s Demand to Skirt Senate Confirmations Poses Early Test of a Radical Second Term; The once and future president is pushing Republicans to systematically abdicate the Senate’s constitutional role in vetting his nominees”: Charlie Savage of The New York Times has this news analysis.

“Jury says defense contractor must pay $42 million over Abu Ghraib abuses; The federal jury found that CACI International shared responsibility with the U.S. Army for abusing detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq”: Salvador Rizzo of The Washington Post has this report.

“Federal Judge Blocks Louisiana Law Requiring Ten Commandments in Classrooms; The ruling is probably the first in what could be a long legal fight for conservative Christian groups hoping to amplify public expressions of faith”: Rick Rojas of The New York Times has this report.

Kim Bellware of The Washington Post reports that “Judge blocks Louisiana from requiring schools to display Ten Commandments; A federal judge said the law was unconstitutional, but the state attorney general quickly promised to appeal the decision.”

Greg LaRose of Louisiana Illuminator reports that “Federal judge halts Louisiana law requiring Ten Commandment classroom displays.”

And Gabriel Tynes of Courthouse News Service reports that “Judge strikes down Louisiana requirement to display Ten Commandments in schools; U.S. District Judge John W. deGravelles said the law, passed by state legislators in May 2024, amounts to coercion.”

You can access today’s 177-page ruling of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana at this link.

“Cook County assault weapon ban challenged at Seventh Circuit; The case went before the appellate court only four days after a conservative federal judge declared Illinois’ statewide assault weapon ban unconstitutional”: Dave Byrnes of Courthouse News Service has this report.

“How disagreements about a Texas death row inmate’s guilt became a legal battle between branches of government; The Texas Supreme Court is considering whether a legislative subpoena of a death row inmate infringed on the executive branch’s power to carry out the execution”: Pooja Salhotra of The Texas Tribune has this report.

“DC Circuit side-eyes Capitol rioter’s argument that pepper spray is not a dangerous weapon; An attorney representing Jan. 6 defendant Markus Maly argued that courts condone the use of pepper spray by police officers every day, and thus Maly’s use against an officer should be treated similarly”: Ryan Knappenberger of Courthouse News Service has this report.

“GOP asks Pa. Supreme Court to reject mail-in ballots with handwritten date errors”: Ryan Deto of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has this report.

“Death row inmate looks to Seventh Circuit for spousal visitation rights; The inmate sued the Federal Bureau of Prisons in 2021 after they denied his wife’s visitation request because he did not have a relationship with her prior to his incarceration”: Caitlyn Rosen of Courthouse News Service has this report.

“Mafia Case Tests Supreme Court on Crime of Violence Limits; Court has narrowed what counts as crime of violence; Justices struggled with common sense problems on both sides”: Kimberly Strawbridge Robinson of Bloomberg Law has this report.

“‘Dark money’ helped Democrats dominate Michigan Supreme Court races”: Simon D. Schuster of Bridge Michigan has this report.

“Supreme Court Mulls Deadline for Voluntary Immigrant Departures; Court asked for holiday, weekend flexibility; Tenth Circuit ruled 60-day deadline is not extendable”: Lydia Wheeler of Bloomberg Law has this report.

And Kelsey Reichmann of Courthouse News Service reports that “Sparks fly as justices spar with feds over deportation deadlines; The federal government drew the ire of the Supreme Court in both of Tuesday’s cases, struggling to defend deportation filing deadlines and grapple with violent crime.”

“Liberals panic as Trump eyes domination of Supreme Court; His appointees to the highest court last time allowed conservatives to overturn the federal right to abortion and much else besides; With a Republican Senate, he can take his pick once again”: David Charter of The Times of London has this report.

“Sending your kid to public school isn’t consenting to arbitration, Calif judge says”: Alison Frankel’s “On the Case” from Reuters has this post.

“Public health and the U.S. Constitution: A Q&A with retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer.” The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health has posted this video on YouTube.

“Trump Turns to GOP Lawyer McGinley for White House Counsel Job; McGinley, a Jones Day alum, has long worked in Republican legal circles; Trump’s previous White House Counsel McGahn focused on judge picks”: Tatyana Monnay of Bloomberg Law has this report.

“Will the Supreme Court Stand Up to Trump? Can It?” Law professor Stephen I. Vladeck has this guest essay online at The New York Times.

“US Senate Democrats rush to confirm judges before Trump takes office”: Nate Raymond of Reuters has this report.

“Justice Samuel Alito Plans to Remain on Supreme Court; Some Republicans suggest the veteran jurist could step down to let Trump appoint a younger conservative”: Jess Bravin of The Wall Street Journal has this report.

“Trump could tip the scales in Elon Musk’s secret battle against DOJ; Musk’s X Corp. has invoked the First Amendment in a behind-the-scenes legal challenge to a common tactic used in criminal investigations”: Kyle Cheney, Josh Gerstein, and Alfred Ng of Politico have this report.

“Ex-Trump Aide Meadows Rejected by Supreme Court in Georgia Case; Justices refuse to shift case against him into federal court; Meadows one of 19 people charged in case over 2020 election”: Greg Stohr of Bloomberg News has this report, along with articles headlined “New York Rent-Control System Survives Challenge at Supreme Court; Justices decline to hear landlords’ appeals without comment; Court has repeatedly rebuffed constitutional attacks on rules” and “Supreme Court Lets Stand Ruling Curbing Bid-Rigging Prosecutions.”

“Many in government are worried about Trump’s return. At DOJ, they’re terrified. Trump blames DOJ for much of his torment over the past four years. Lawyers there fear what’s next.” Josh Gerstein of Politico has this report.

Access today’s Order List of the U.S. Supreme Court: At this link. The Court did not grant review in any new cases.