WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is set to rule on some of its biggest cases of the term. The High Court still has 10 notices to issue over the next week before the judges begin their summer recess. As usual, the latest published notices cover some of the most contentious issues the court has faced with this term, including affirmative action, student loans and gay rights.
Here’s a look at some of the cases the court has left to decide since the term began in October:
AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
The survival of affirmative action in higher education is the subject of two related cases, one involving Harvard and the other the University of North Carolina. The Supreme Court has previously endorsed the use of affirmative action in higher education in rulings dating back to 1978. But the justices’ decision to take the cases suggested a willingness to revisit those rulings. And when the high court heard arguments in the cases in late October, the court’s six conservative justices expressed doubts about the practice.
The Biden administration has said getting rid of race-conscious college admissions would have a “destabilizing” effect that would plummet the ranks of black and Latino students at the nation’s most selective schools.
STUDENT LOANS
The judges will also decide the fate of President Joe Biden’s plan to erase or reduce student loans held by millions of Americans. When the court heard arguments in the case in February, the plan did not seem likely to survive, although it is possible that the judges could rule that the challengers had no right to sue and that the plan may always going forward.
Biden had proposed to write off $10,000 in federal student loan debt for those with incomes below $125,000 a year or households earning less than $250,000. He also wanted to set aside an additional $10,000 for those who received federal Pell grants to attend college. The administration said millions of borrowers would benefit from the program.
Regardless of what happens in the High Court, loan repayments suspended since the start of the coronavirus pandemic three years ago will resume this summer.
GAY RIGHTS
A conflict between gay rights and religious rights must also be decided by the court. The case involves a Christian graphic designer from Colorado who wants to start designing wedding websites, but objects to creating wedding websites for same-sex couples.
State law requires businesses that are open to the public to provide services to all customers, but designer Lorie Smith says the law violates her free speech rights. She says a ruling against her would force artists – from painters and photographers to writers and musicians – to do work contrary to their beliefs. Her opponents, meanwhile, say that if she wins, a range of businesses will be able to discriminate, refusing to serve black, Jewish or Muslim customers, interracial or interfaith couples or immigrants.
During oral arguments in the case in December, the court’s conservative majority favored Smith’s arguments, and religious plaintiffs have won a series of victories in the High Court in recent years.
RELIGIOUS RIGHTS
Another case that could end in a victory for religious rights is that of a Christian postman who refused to work on Sundays when he was required to deliver Amazon packages.
The question for the high court has to do with when businesses should accommodate religious employees. The case is somewhat unusual in that both sides agree on a number of things, and when the court heard arguments in April, liberal and conservative justices seemed to largely agree that companies like the Postal Service cannot cite minor costs or hardship to deny claims. to accommodate religious practices. It could mean a decision joined by both liberals and conservatives.
However, it was less clear how judges could decide a particular worker’s case.
VOTE
As election season gathers pace, the Supreme Court has yet to say what it will do in a case involving the power of state legislatures to set rules for congressional and presidential elections unchecked by state legislatures. state courts.
In a case in North Carolina, judges were asked to essentially eliminate the power of state courts to strike down congressional districts established by legislatures on the grounds that they violate state constitutions.
But there is a wrinkle. Since the justices heard arguments in the case in December, the North Carolina State Supreme Court has thrown out the decision the Supreme Court was reviewing after Republicans claimed control of that court. This could give the judges a way out and let them drop the case without reaching a decision.
The High Court could yet take up a similar case in Ohio and make a decision there, but that wouldn’t be until after the 2024 election.