In this episode of Rightly Decided, the litigators from the Texas Public Policy Foundation return to the hallowed (and slightly dusty) halls of the Supreme Court. Fresh off getting sworn into the SCOTUS bar, Clayton Calvin gives us a behind-the-scenes look at drop days in June and what it’s really like to watch the justices read from the bench.
Then, the team unpacks a trio of fascinating cases that touch everything from delivery vans to death penalty appeals:
- The “Last Mile” Loophole: How a Gorsuch-authored, unanimous decision in Flower Foods impacts interstate commerce, delivery drivers, and why originalists aren’t crying into their pillows over it.
- The Magic Words of Jury Selection: A deep dive into Pitchford v. Cain and the messy reality of trial law. What happens when a judge cuts off a Batson challenge? How far does an attorney have to go to preserve a constitutional claim without completely infuriating the bench?
- The FCC’s Empty Threats: An 8-1 breakdown of FCC v. AT&T. The government completely rewrites its own playbook on the fly, leading Chief Justice Roberts to send an emphatic message to agencies about how they interpret their rules.
Key Takeaways From the Episode
- The Wickard Distinction: Why the Flower Foods case is a traditional application of interstate commerce routing rather than an aggressive expansion of the substantial effects test.
- The Debate Over Party Presentation: Chance and Laura Beth lock horns (amicably) on Article 3, footnotes, and how much a judge should rely strictly on the arguments framed by the litigants.
- An Invitation to Ignore: Why the Supreme Court’s ruling on the FCC’s non-self-enforcing penalties might just incentivize companies to start tossing administrative “orders” straight into the recycling bin.
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