Supreme Court – Page 37

Whether the Federal Circuit erred in this case, as it did in Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. v. Roxanne Laboratories, Inc., 903 F.3d 1310 (Fed. Cir. 2018), in holding that objective indicia of non-obviousness may be partially or entirely discounted where the development of the invention was allegedly “blocked” by the existence of a prior patent, and, if so, further erred by making an implicit finding that an invention was “blocked,” without requiring evidence of or making a finding of actual blocking, and in the face of evidence to the contrary.

Agency Cert Opposition Brief in Casino Pauma v. NLRB

April 13, 2019Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here:

nlrb-bio-3.pdf

Cert petition here.

Washington State Bar Indian Law Section Newsletter — Spring 2019

April 11, 2019Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here.

Comanche Nation of Oklahoma v. Bernhardt Cert Petition [Chickasaw Gaming]

April 8, 2019April 8, 2019Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the petition captioned Comanche Nation of Oklahoma v. Zinke [but presumably will switch to Comanche Nation of Oklahoma v. Bernhardt]:

Companche v Zinke Cert Petition

Question presented:

Whether the “former reservation” exception permitting lands acquired by the United States in trust for an Oklahoma Tribe after the effective date of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 to be devoted to gaming purposes, is applicable to lands not subject to Tribal jurisdiction prior to the acquisition.

Lower court materials here.

Oglala Sioux Tribe v. Fleming Cert Petition

April 3, 2019Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here:

cert petition

Questions presented:

1. Whether the Eighth Circuit erred in holding, in conflict with decisions of this Court and three other courts of appeals, that the possibility of filing a separate mandamus action was in and of itself “sufficient” to provide an “adequate opportunity” requiring Younger abstention, where plaintiffs had no opportunity to challenge the constitutionality of the preliminary hearing procedure in the course of the state’s abuse and neglect proceedings?
2. Whether the court of appeals erred in holding, in conflict with three courts of appeals, that the “extraordinary circumstances” exception to Younger abstention applies only to flagrantly and patently unconstitutional statutes, but not to flagrantly and patently unconstitutional policies, and in concluding that separating children from their parents for sixty days with no notice or opportunity to be heard inflicted no irreparable harm?

Lower court materials here.

SCOTUS Decides Sturgeon v. Frost II

March 26, 2019March 26, 2019Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the opinion.

Materials here.

Update — footnote 2 of the majority:

As noted earlier, the Ninth Circuit has held in three cases—the so called Katie John trilogy—that the term “public lands,” when used in ANILCA’s subsistence-fishing provisions, encompasses navigable waters like the Nation River. See Alaska v. Babbitt, 72 F. 3d 698 (1995); John v. United States, 247 F. 3d 1032 (2001) (en banc); John v. United States, 720 F. 3d 1214 (2013); supra, at 12. Those provisions are not at issue in this case, and we therefore do not disturb the Ninth Circuit’s holdings that the Park Service may regulate subsistence fishing on navigable waters. See generally Brief for State of Alaska as Amicus Curiae 29–35 (arguing that this case does not implicate those decisions); Brief for Ahtna, Inc., as Amicus Curiae 30–36 (same).

Buchwald Capital Advisors LLC v. Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians Cert Petition [Bankruptcy Code + Sovereign Immunity]

March 22, 2019Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here:

buchwald cert petition

Question presented:

Whether the Bankruptcy Code abrogates the sovereign immunity of Indian tribes.

Lower court materials here.