Rothgery was a tremendous victory, on several levels, for my colleagues at the Texas Fair Defense Project. It was argued on March 17 and issued yesterday. Many observers are still watching for Kennedy v. Louisiana, argued April 16. Seven cases argued this term remain unresolved; more opinions are to be issued tomorrow morning at 10:00 am EDT / 9:00 am CDT. Tom Goldstein believes it likely that there will be an additional day in the term to issue opinions, as well.
Legal Times' Tony Mauro notes in, "A Supreme Week for Walter Dellinger," that the former Solicitor General is still awaiting rulings in three cases he argued before the Court this term.
Waiting for one decision in the final week of the Supreme Court's term can be stressful enough. Chances for a mixed or messy opinion seem to escalate, and early assumptions about how the case will be decided go out the window, as lawyers envision justices arm-wrestling over the final outcome. But Walter Dellinger, chair of the appellate practice at O'Melveny & Myers, has three decisions to look forward to this week -- nearly half of the seven cases left to decide. And two of them -- District of Columbia v. Heller and Exxon Shipping Co. v. Baker are almost certainly destined for landmark status.
"It is a very strange feeling," Dellinger said Monday morning after the Court issued three non-Dellinger-related rulings. "It's something of a train wreck when it's one case. I don't quite know how it works if you have two come down the same day. Or three." The Court will sit again on Wednesday and possibly one other day before wrapping up for the term.
Dellinger explains, "When a decision comes down in a case you've argued, it blows up your whole day. You need to review the decision, consult with colleagues who worked on the case, report the result to the client's general counsel, sometimes brief the senior management of the company on the implications of the decision, and, if the client asks you to, respond to press inquiries which can be numerous in high-profile cases." Multiply by three, and you can see what kind of week he'll have.
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