Oct 2 (Reuters) – The US Supreme Court is hearing a series of important cases during its new term that begins on Monday involving issues such as President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, assault-style rifle bans, Big Oil’s financial liability for climate change, Republican-backed voting restrictions, LGBT rights and more.
Here is a look at some of the cases being argued during the term, which runs to about the end of June.
TRUMP’S MANDATORY IMMIGRATION DETENTION
The court will decide the legality of Trump’s policy that subjects millions of immigrants in the US illegally to mandatory detention during deportation proceedings. The policy is part of Trump’s pursuit of mass deportation. The justices took up the Trump administration’s appeal of a lower court’s ruling against the policy in a case involving a Brazilian national. The administration abandoned the US government’s longstanding interpretation of federal law that immigrants already living in the US could be released on bond while their cases play out in immigration court. The date for the arguments has not yet been announced. A ruling is expected by the end of June.
TRUMP’S THIRD-COUNTRY DEPORTATIONS
The justices will hear arguments in December over the Trump administration’s policy of deporting migrants to nations other than their own — so-called “third countries” — without offering them the chance to show the harms they may face. The court on September 29 let the administration continue the policy for the time being, putting on hold a federal judge’s ruling that removing migrants to third countries is unlawful. More than 25,000 migrants have been deported to 29 countries under the policy, according to human rights groups. A ruling is expected by the end of June.
BAN ON ASSAULT-STYLE RIFLES
The justices will hear arguments on December 2 in a challenge to the legality of state prohibitions on assault-style rifles, giving them another chance to expand gun rights in a case that involves a type of weapon often associated with mass shootings. Lower courts upheld bans in Cook County, Illinois, and Connecticut on powerful semiautomatic rifles such as AR-15s. The lower courts rejected arguments that the measures violate the US Constitution’s Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms.” Gun rights groups and other challengers have said that Supreme Court precedents concerning the Second Amendment protect these firearms, which they described as in “common use.” A ruling is expected by the end of June.
BIG OIL CLIMATE SUIT
The court will hear arguments on Monday in a bid by ExxonMobil and Suncor Energy to scuttle a lawsuit brought by officials in Boulder, Colorado, that seeks to hold the oil companies liable for helping drive climate change. The companies appealed after a lower court let the litigation move forward. The suit alleging state law violations by the companies seeks unspecified monetary damages for costs incurred by Boulder associated with mitigating the impact of climate change. A ruling is expected by the end of June.
VOTING RIGHTS
The justices will hear arguments on December 8 in a Republican-led bid to revive voter restrictions in Arizona that would stiffen proof-of-citizenship requirements for voter registrants and purge state voter rolls of alleged non-US citizens. Republicans appealed after a lower court halted provisions of Arizona’s law because they were found to violate a federal voting registration statute. President Donald Trump’s administration has backed key elements of the appeal. Critics have said the Arizona measure adds extra mandates for voting that unfairly target Latino, Native American and student voters. Those groups tend to favor Democratic candidates. A ruling is expected by the end of June.
LGBT RIGHTS
The justices will hear arguments on November 3 in a bid by the Archdiocese of Denver and other Catholic entities to be exempted from a Colorado preschool funding program’s nondiscrimination requirement. A lower court found that Colorado’s program did not violate the religious rights of the Catholic plaintiffs under the US Constitution’s First Amendment. The program provides state funds for preschools. The Catholic plaintiffs objected to the state’s requirement that schools receiving funding under the program give all children “equal opportunity” to enroll in preschool regardless of certain characteristics, including the sexual orientation or gender identity of students or their family members. A ruling is expected by the end of June.
EPIC GAMES SUIT AGAINST APPLE
The justices will hear Apple’s bid to escape being found in contempt in its legal fight with “Fortnite” maker Epic Games after the iPhone maker was deemed in violation of a judicial order mandating sweeping changes to its lucrative App Store in the antitrust litigation. Apple appealed a lower court’s ruling upholding a decision by an Oakland, California-based federal judge finding Apple in contempt in Epic’s 2020 lawsuit contesting App Store fees. The date for the arguments has not yet been announced. A ruling is expected by the end of June.
PEPSICO TRADEMARK CASE
The court will hear arguments in a bid by canned-coffee maker Rise Brewing to hold PepsiCo liable for alleged trademark infringement concerning Pepsi’s morning energy drink “Mtn Dew Rise.” Rise appealed a lower court’s ruling rejecting the company’s claim that the product name “Mtn Dew Rise” infringes its trademarks and creates customer confusion with its coffee brand. The date for the arguments has not yet been announced. A ruling is expected by the end of June.
(Compliled by Andrew Chung and John Kruzel; Editing by Will Dunham)
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