Friday morning docket: The not-so friendly skies edition

As airline cancellations and bankruptcy filings continue to mount this week, Congress s taking another look at whether passing a passengers’ bill of rights is needed. Here is a look at what else is on the legal news agenda in Congress, the White House and the Supreme Court.

The U.S. Supreme Court returns today for a private conference. If any newsworthy orders are released, will let you know here. Next week the Court resumes oral arguments.

On Monday the Court will hear oral arguments in Plains Commerce Bank v. Long Family Land & Cattle, the Court will consider the subject-matter jurisdiction limits of Indian tribunal courts in contractual disputers between member and non-member corporations.

In Bridge v. Phoenix Bond & Indemnity, the Court will hear arguments over whether RICO lawsuits can be brought against defendants who made false statements to a neutral third party.

Tuesday the Court hears argument in Greenlaw v. United States, which considers whether federal appellate courts have the ability to raise the sentence of a criminal defendant without the request of prosecutors.

Then in Irizarry v. United States, the justices will consider whether courts must give advance notice to the parties before imposing a sentence outside federal sentencing guidelines.

Wednesday arguments kick off with Kennedy v. Louisiana, which considers whether the death penalty for child rape convictions constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.

Then in Taylor v. Sturgell, the justices will hear arguments over whether the dismissal of the Freedom of Information Act claim bar another individual from filing a similar claim.

Meanwhile:

The Senate approved a housing relief package that will give tax breaks for home builders and other businesses. (NYT)

Attorney General Michael Mukasey, testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee, distanced himself from a Justice Department memorandum suggesting that post-Sept. 11 military searches on U.S. soil were not subject to Fourth Amendment protections. (NYT)

Lawyers for the Democratic-led House Judiciary Committee told a federal judge that the refusal by White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and former counsel Harriet Miers to provide information to Congress about fired federal prosecutors represents the most expansive view of executive privilege since Watergate. (AP)

President Bush’s approval ratings continue to sink lower. (AP)

Begging Bush’s pardon

President George W. Bush granted 15 pardons yesterday, bringing the total reprieves issued during his two terms to 157.

Unless he goes on a pardon-granting spree in the last few months of his administration, he is on track to grant roughly half the number of pardons granted during the Reagan or Clinton administrations.

For a list of those who were pardoned by the president, click here.

Monday status conference: Post-Easter edition

Good morning. As you try to figure out some recipes for all those leftover hardboiled eggs (potato salad, anyone?) here’s a look of what’s going on:

Congress is still on a break designed to allow lawmakers to work in their home districts, although Sen. Arlen Specter thinks it’s time for them to come back to Washington. The Supreme Court hears more oral arguments this week (see this post for more). And it’s still Easter at the White House! The annual White House Easter Egg Roll is today!

Meanwhile,

Here’s a peek at what’s in this week’s issue of Lawyers USA (subscribers can click the links for the full stories):

With a full-fledged recession looming, lawyers should start thinking about how they can shield their practices from a sustained economic downturn. Although experts disagree on whether we are technically in a recession, there’s no doubt that lawyers are beginning to feel the economic pressures their clients have felt for months. More here.

Celebrity cases such as Heath Ledger’s recent death from mixing prescription drugs and Dennis Quaid’s newborn twins receiving an adult dose of a blood thinner only scratch the surface of a growing number of lawsuits over medication errors. More here.

The recent jump in the number of federal discrimination charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in the last fiscal year - the largest annual increase since the early 1990s - has employment lawyers urging companies to take a careful look at their workplaces. More here.

A recent case over the herbal supplement Airborne is just one example of the many false advertising class actions being filed across the country. More here.

Elsewhere in the news:

Lawmakers want the Justice Department to investigate the unauthorized searches of the passport files of Sens. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John McCain. (NYT).

Sen. Obama has been working hard to woo elite Washington lawyers. (LT)

Friday morning docket: March Madness edition

Good morning. As you check your brackets (who picked Belmont?), here’s a look around Washington:

Congressional lawmakers are still in their home districts (with a few in more exotic locations, like India, in the case of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi). The Supreme Court is in the middle of March oral arguments.

Monday brings the first afternoon oral argument session of the term, with the Court hearing three cases:

In Burgess v. United States, the Court will consider when a federal law hiking the minimum mandatory sentence for a drug distribution charge is triggered.

In United States v. Clintwood Elkhorn Mining, the Court will hear arguments on whether taxpayer refund claims under the Tucker Act, which has a six-year statute of limitations, are preempted by the United States Tax Code, which has a three-year statute of limitations.

In the afternoon Monday, the Court considers whether the Voting Rights Act of 1965 requires Alabama to pre-clear two state court decisions invalidating state and local laws creating a special election for local officials in Riley v. Kennedy.

Tuesday, Attorney General Michael Mukasey will argue the government’s case to the justices in United States v. Ressam.

The Court will also hear whether U.S. courts have jurisdiction to hear habeas corpus petitions brought on behalf of U.S. citizens detained overseas by American military authorities in Munaf v. Geren.

Wednesday, the Court hears arguments in Indiana v. Edwards, asking whether a criminal defendant need only be “literate, competent, and understanding” to invoke his Sixth Amendment right to self-representation.

And in Florida Department of Revenue v. Piccadilly Cafeterias, the Court will hear whether the Bankruptcy Code prohibits states from imposing taxes on pre-confirmation asset sales that are essential to the completion of a reorganization plan.

(Summaries from the folks at the Oyez Project)

Meanwhile,

Scooter Libby got disbarred. (WaPo).

The chairman of the House Financial Services Committee said Wednesday he will push for stricter federal regulation of investment banks (AP).

The White House says the reason President Bush’s popularity rating is so low is because he’s doing a good job. (AP)

The Bush Administration has announced that up to 10 states will be able to use alternative standards under the federal No Child Left Behind law. The administration said the move is meant to help struggling students, but critics of the law said it is evidence that it is simply not working. (AP)

Friday morning docket, Pre-St. Patty’s Day edition

Top o’ the morning to ya. As you make weekend plans that may or may not involve green beer (or a green river, if you live in Chicago), here’s a look at what’s happening in Washington:

The Supreme Court justices gather today for a private conference. We’ll let you know if they had down any newsworthy orders.

Meanwhile, oral arguments resume at the Court next week, including the much anticipated arguments Tuesday in D.C. v. Heller, 07-290, where attorneys representing the District of Columbia, a D.C. resident, and the Department of Justice will make their case about whether the Second Amendment allows for a ban on handguns. If the drama in the court on Tuesday is anything like the behind-the-scenes theatre in the case, it will make for good viewing.

Other cases on the oral argument calendar next week:

On Monday, the Court will hear Philippines v. Pimentel, 06-1204, considering whether the award of assets to creditors of former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos was proper when the Philippine government, claiming rightful ownership of the assets, excluded itself from the proceedings based on sovereign immunity. The court also will then hear arguments in Rothgery v. Gillespie County, 07-440, considering whether the right to counsel under the Sixth Amendment is implicated when a defendant was denied counsel at the time of his initial hearing for being a felon in possession of a firearm but the hearing was conducted without the involvement of a prosecutor.

Wednesday, the Court will hear arguments in Richlin Security Service v. Chertoff, 06-1717, a case considering whether, under the Equal Access to Justice Act, a prevailing party may be awarded attorney fees for paralegal services at the market rate for such services or if the Act limits reimbursement for paralegal services to cost only. Then arguments will be heard in Chamber of Commerce v. Brown, 06-939, which asks whether National Labor Relations Act, which states that companies’ anti-labor speech can only be considered unfair labor practice if it threatens or coerces workers, preempt state laws prohibiting the use of state funds to “assist, promote, or deter union organizing,” even if the public funds are transparently segregated.

Meanwhile,

Supreme Court Justices Anthony Kennedy and Clarence Thomas tell lawmakers the federal judiciary needs cash, not cameras. (AP)

Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said women around the globe lack access to justice systems. (Lawyers USA)

Congress passes a budget. (AFP)

The White House unveils a plan to stop the credit crisis. (NYT)

Historic Congressional lawsuit

While the rest of the country watched the news about a certain lawyer who allegedly did certain things in a certain Washington, DC hotel room, a panel of House lawmakers filed a lawsuit in an effort to force White House chief is staff Joshua Bolten and former White House Counsel Harriet Miers to talk about their role in the firings of nine U.S. attorneys in 2006.

In case you missed it, yesterday’s move by the House Judiciary Committee was historic - it marked the first time the House or Senate sued members of the Executive Branch.

The more came after the House voted contempt charges against Bolten and Miers, but Attorney General Michael Mukasey refused to refer the matter to a federal grand jury.

After the filing, committee chairman Rep. John Conyers, Jr., said in a statement: “We will not allow the administration to steamroll Congress. The administration’s extreme claims to be immune from the oversight process are at odds with our constitutional principles on which this country was founded, and I am confident the federal courts will agree.”

The White House has maintained that Bolten and Miers are shielded by executive privilege.