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Supreme Court to hear cases via teleconference and broadcast live for first time

• The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in five cases over three days. The court announced new procedures for conducting oral arguments via conference call after it postponed hearing these cases in March and April due to the coronavirus outbreak. The Court announced several new procedures for the teleconference system, including rules determining which justices will ask questions based on seniority.

• The case: United States Patent and Trademark Office v. Booking.com B.V., a case concerning trademark law, originated from the 4th Circuit and will be argued on May 4.

  • Background: The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) denied Booking.com's four applications to trademark the name Booking.com. The USPTO said the name was generic and not a protectable mark. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board upheld the USPTO's decision.
    
    On further appeal, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ordered the USPTO to accept two of Booking.com's trademark applications, and remanded the case for further proceedings on the remaining two applications. The USPTO filed a motion to remand all four trademark applications and to require Booking.com to pay the USPTO's attorneys' fees.
    
    The district court denied the motion to remand all four applications, but accepted the motion to pay attorneys' fees. Both Booking.com and the USPTO appealed the district court's ruling. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court's decision. The USPTO petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case.

  • The issue: "Whether the addition by an online business of a generic top-level domain (".com") to an otherwise generic term can create a protectable trademark."

• The case: USAID v. Alliance for Open Society International, a case concerning the United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003, originated in the 2nd Circuit and will be argued on May 5.

  • Background: The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) provides federal funds to U.S.-based organizations like the Alliance for Open Society International, Inc. (AOSI). The United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003 barred AOSI from receiving the funds unless they adopted "a policy explicitly opposing prostitution and sex trafficking," known as the policy requirement.
    
    In 2005, AOSI sought to prohibit the policy requirement's enforcement. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and subsequently the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the prohibition on enforcement. SCOTUS upheld these decisions in Agency for International Development v. Alliance for Open Society International, Inc. (2013), holding the policy requirement violated the 1st Amendment.
    
    AOSI challenged the government's interpretation of the Supreme Court's opinion and obtained a permanent injunction against the policy requirement in the Southern District of New York. USAID petitioned the Supreme Court, asking if its 2013 decision applied to "legally distinct foreign entities operating overseas that are affiliated with" U.S.-based organizations like AOSI.

  • The issue: "Whether—considering SCOTUS' 2013 decision in Agency for International Development v. Alliance for Open Society International Inc., in which the court held the First Amendment bars enforcement of Congress' policy requirement—the First Amendment further bars enforcement of that requirement with respect to legally distinct foreign entities operating overseas that are affiliated with U.S.-based organizations that receive federal funds to fight HIV/AIDS abroad."

• The case: Little Sisters of the Poor Saints Peter and Paul Home v. Pennsylvania (consolidated with Trump v. Pennsylvania) concerns the legality of agency rules providing a religious or moral exemption to the contraception mandate created under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). It originated in the 3rd Circuit and will be heard on May 6.

  • Background: After several years of litigation, including two U.S. Supreme Court decisions involving regulatory accommodations for religious and moral objections to contraception under the ACA, the Trump administration issued regulations allowing for exceptions to the federal contraceptive mandate.
    
    The 3rd Circuit upheld a nationwide injunction that kept the rules from going into effect. The court held that the states challenging the rules were likely to prove that the Trump administration violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), that the ACA did not allow the regulations, and that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) did not require them.

  • The issues:
    "(1) Whether a litigant who is directly protected by an administrative rule and has been allowed to intervene to defend it lacks standing to appeal a decision invalidating the rule if the litigant is also protected by an injunction from a different court?
    
    (2) Whether the federal government lawfully exempted religious objectors from the regulatory requirement to provide health plans that include contraceptive coverage?"

• The case: Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants Inc., a case concerning the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA), originated in the 4th Circuit and will be heard on May 6.

  • Background: In May 2016, the American Association of Political Consultants, Inc. and three other plaintiffs initiated litigation in district court, claiming that one of the statutory exemptions to the TCPA violated the free speech clause of the 1st Amendment. The exemption—otherwise known as the government-debt exception or debt-collection exemption—allows automated calls relating to collecting debts owed to or guaranteed by the federal government.
    
    The plaintiffs and the U.S. Government each filed motions for summary judgment in the Eastern District of North Carolina. The court denied the motion for summary judgment by the plaintiffs and granted summary judgment to the U.S. Government. Concurrently, the court rejected the plaintiffs' free speech clause challenge. On appeal, the 4th Circuit vacated the district court's judgment in favor of the U.S. Government, directed that the government-debt exception be severed from the TCPA, and remanded the case for further proceedings.

  • The issue: "Whether the government-debt exception to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991’s automated-call restriction violates the First Amendment, and whether the proper remedy for any constitutional violation is to sever the exception from the remainder of the statute."

U.S. Senate to reconvene

• The Senate will convene as scheduled on Monday, May 4, confirmed Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) earlier this week. The chamber has been on an extended recess after adjourning at the end of the day on March 26. The Senate canceled a mid-March recess in order to pass emergency coronavirus legislation.

• The House has been on recess since adjourning on March 13, and does not yet have a scheduled return date. House Majority leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca.) initially planned to convene on May 4 as well, but canceled these plans after the House physician recommended against it.

• Washington, D.C., remains under a stay-at-home order through May 15. In a  statement regarding the Senate’s return to the Capitol, McConnell said, "We will modify routines in ways that are smart and safe, but we will honor our constitutional duty to the American people and conduct critical business in person."

• As of this week, one U.S. Senator—Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky—had tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. Paul has said that he is fully recovered from the illness.

Mfume wins special election in Maryland’s 7th Congressional District

• Kweisi Mfume (D) defeated Kimberly Klacik (R) in the special election for Mayland’s 7th Congressional District Tuesday. He fills the vacancy left by Elijah Cummings (D), who died in October 2019. As of Thursday morning, Mfume led with 72.8% of the vote to Klacik’s 26.3%. Mfume cannot be sworn into office until after results are certified by the Maryland Board of Elections, which could happen as early as May 8.

• Four special elections have been held during the 116th U.S. Congress—the current meeting of the Senate and House of Representatives. Three such elections were held in 2019, and five more are scheduled during the rest of this year.

• Voters decided 136 congressional special elections between 1985 and 2012—19 in the Senate and 117 in the House of Representatives. In those elections, nine seats changed partisan hands, with Republicans gaining six seats and Democrats gaining three.

New York cancels Democratic presidential primary, Yang sues state elections board

• Andrew Yang, a former candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination filed suit against the New York State Board of Elections along with several candidates for New York’s delegation to the Democratic National Convention. The suit concerned the Board’s decision to cancel the state's Democratic presidential preference primary and was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

  • Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) postponed the Democratic presidential preference primary which originally coincided with New York’s statewide primary for congressional, state, and local offices scheduled to take place on June 23. Senator Bernie Sanders (I) suspended his presidential campaign on April 8, making former Vice President Joe Biden (D) the presumptive Democratic nominee. On April 27, the state board of elections moved to cancel the Democratic presidential preference primary. A law enacted earlier in April authorized the board to remove candidates from ballots upon the suspension or termination of their campaigns.

Voters decide Ohio’s rescheduled congressional primaries 

• Ohio held primaries for each of its 16 U.S. House seats on April 28, 2020. The general election will be held on November 3.

• The following results are based on the Ohio Secretary of State’s unofficial election results report at 3 p.m. EDT on April 30. The Secretary of State’s office reported that there were 244,061 outstanding absentee and provisional ballots at that time. 

  • District 1: Kate Schroder defeated Nikki Foster with 68% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Steve Chabot (R) and Kevin Kahn (Libertarian) ran unopposed. 
  • District 2: Jaime Castle (D) ran unopposed. Incumbent Brad Wenstrup defeated H. Robert Harris with 94% of the vote in the Republican primary.
  • District 3: Incumbent Joyce Beatty defeated Morgan Harper with 68% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Mark Richardson defeated Cleophus Dulaney with 86% of the vote in the Republican primary.

    • Democratic primary: Ballotpedia identified this as a battleground race. This was Beatty’s first contested primary since 2012, the year when she was first elected to the House. She campaigned on her experience in Congress, saying her record included securing federal funds for the district for such things as Columbus’ Near East Side revitalization project. End Citizens United and Planned Parenthood Action Fund were among Beatty’s endorsers.
      
      Harper, who served as senior advisor to the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from 2013 to 2017, ran to Beatty’s left. Harper supported Medicare for All, a universal income, and a Green New Deal. Her endorsers included the Working Families Party and Justice Democrats.

  • District 4: Shannon Freshour defeated Jeffrey Sites and Mike Larsen with 48% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Jim Jordan (R) and Steve Perkins (Libertarian) ran unopposed.
  • District 5: Nick Rubando defeated Xavier Carrigan and Gene Redinger with 51% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Bob Latta (R) ran unopposed.
  • District 6: Shawna Roberts (D) ran unopposed. Incumbent Bill Johnson defeated Kenneth Morgan with 87% of the vote in the Republican primary.
  • District 7: Incumbent Bob Gibbs (R), Quentin Potter (D), and Brandon Lape (Libertarian) ran unopposed.
  • District 8: Vanessa Enoch defeated Matthew Guyette with 79% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Warren Davidson defeated Edward Meer with 91% of the vote in the Republican primary.
  • District 9: Incumbent Marcy Kaptur defeated Peter Rosewicz with 91% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Rob Weber defeated Charles Barrett, Timothy Corrigan, and Tim Connors with 60% of the vote in the Republican primary.
  • District 10: Desiree Tims defeated Eric Moyer with 70% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Michael Turner defeated John Anderson and Kathi Flanders with 87% of the vote in the Republican primary. 
  • District 11: Incumbent Marcia Fudge defeated Michael Hood, Tariq Shabazz, and James Jerome Bell with 91% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Laverne Gore defeated Jonah Schulz and Shalira Taylor with 48% of the vote in the Republican primary. 
  • District 12: Alaina Shearer defeated Jennifer Bell with 59% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Troy Balderson defeated Tim Day with 84% of the vote in the Republican primary. John Stewart (Libertarian) ran unopposed.
  • District 13: Christina Hagan defeated six other candidates in the Republican primary with 66% of the vote. Incumbent Tim Ryan (D) and Michael Fricke (Libertarian) ran unopposed.
  • District 14: Hillary O'Connor Mueri (D) ran unopposed. Incumbent David Joyce defeated Mark Pitrone with 83% of the vote in the Republican primary. 
  • District 15: Joel Newby defeated Daniel Kilgore with 66% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Steve Stivers defeated Shelby Hunt with 88% of the vote in the Republican primary. 
  • District 16: Aaron Godfrey defeated Ronald Karpus with 67% of the vote in the Democratic primary. Incumbent Anthony Gonzalez (R) ran unopposed. 

Biden, Trump win Ohio presidential primary

• Former Vice President Joe Biden won the Ohio Democratic primary with 72% of the vote. He is estimated to have won at least 123 of the state’s 136 delegates. According to the Associated Press, he is 563 delegates away from crossing the threshold of 1,991 pledged delegates necessary to formally clinch the Democratic presidential nomination.

• President Donald Trump was uncontested on the Republican primary ballot and won all 82 delegates.

• Ohio’s presidential primary was originally scheduled to take place on March 17. It was postponed until April 28 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

SCOTUS issues rulings in cases concerning the Affordable Care Act, copyright law, and New York City's former ban on transporting firearms

• On April 27, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued rulings in three cases argued during its October Term 2019-2020. The court has 29 decisions this term. 

• The case: Maine Community Health Options v. United States concerned the "Risk Corridors" program of Section 1342 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The case originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and was argued on December 10, 2019.

  • The issue: Writing for the majority, Justice Sonia Sotomayor defined the issue: "These cases are about whether petitioners—insurers who claim losses under the Risk Corridors program—have a right to payment under §1342 and a damages remedy for the unpaid amounts."

  • The outcome: The court reversed the Federal Circuit's decision in an 8-1 ruling and remanded the case. The court held that the risk corridors statute created a government obligation to pay insurers the full amount set out in Section 1342's formula, that Congress did not implicitly repeal the obligation through its appropriations riders, and that petitioners properly relied on the Tucker Act to sue for damages in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.

• The case: Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org Inc., a case that concerned copyright law and the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (OCGA), originated from the 11th Circuit and was argued on December 2, 2019. 

  • The issue: “Whether the government edicts doctrine extends to—and thus renders uncopyrightable—works that lack the force of law, such as the annotations in the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.”

  • The outcome: The court affirmed the 11th Circuit's decision in a 5-4 ruling, holding "the OCGA annotations are ineligible for copyright protection." Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts stated that judges and legislators "may not be considered the 'authors' of the works they produce in the course of their official duties." The rule applies even if the material in question is not legally binding.

• The case: New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. City of New York concerned New York City’s former ban on transporting a licensed, locked, and unloaded handgun to a home or shooting range outside city limits. It originated in the 2nd Circuit and was argued on December 2, 2019. 

  • The issue: “Whether the City's ban on transporting a licensed, locked, and unloaded handgun to a home or shooting range outside city limits is consistent with the Second Amendment, the Commerce Clause, and the constitutional right to travel.”

  • The outcome: The court vacated the 2nd Circuit's ruling in a 6-3 per curiam decision, holding the petitioners' claim was moot because the city changed the ban in 2019. A per curiam decision is issued collectively by the court with no indicated authorship. 

Extended candidate filing period for congressional candidates to end in Michigan

• The statewide filing deadline to run for congressional offices in Michigan is on May 8, 2020. The filing period was originally set to end on April 21, but a court order extended the deadline in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. To qualify for the extended May 8 deadline, congressional candidates must have filed a statement of organization with the Federal Election Commission or formed a candidate committee under Michigan state law on or before March 10. The order also permits candidates to collect and submit signatures electronically. A provision reducing the required number of signatures by 50% is pending appeal.

• Prospective candidates in Michigan may file for the following congressional offices:

  • U.S. Senate (1 seat)

  • U.S House (14 seats)

• Michigan’s primary is scheduled for August 4, and the general election is scheduled for November 3.

• Michigan’s extended deadline is the 37th statewide congressional filing deadline to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next is on May 15 in Washington.

Kansas’ all-mail Democratic presidential primary to conclude May 2

• The Kansas Democratic Party’s all-mail primary concludes on Saturday. The party announced on March 30, 2020, that the primary would not be conducted in-person due to the coronavirus pandemic. Former Vice President Joe Biden and three withdrawn candidates appear on the ballot, which uses ranked-choice voting.

• The Kansas Republican Party announced in September 2019 that it would not hold a presidential caucus.

Deadline to pass for Massachusetts congressional candidates to file nomination petitions with local officials

• The local filing deadline to run for elected office in Massachusetts is on May 5, 2020. In Massachusetts, candidates must file their collected nomination signatures with local election entities four weeks before filing with the Secretary of the Commonwealth. In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued an order that reduced candidate petition signature requirements to 50 percent of their statutory requirements. 

• Prospective candidates may file for the following offices:

  • U.S. Senate (1 seat)

  • U.S. House (9 seats)

• The primary is scheduled for September 1, and the general election is scheduled for November 3. Candidates who filed with their local election entities must also file with the Secretary of the Commonwealth by June 2, 2020.

• Massachusetts’ statewide filing deadline is the 37th to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next statewide filing deadline is in Michigan on May 8. 

• Massachusetts has a divided government, and no political party holds a state government trifecta. A trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and majorities in both state legislative chambers.

Is Congress in session?

Where was the president last week?

• On Monday, Trump participated in a video conference with governors regarding the COVID-19 response and economic revival.

• On Tuesday, Trump met with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and delivered remarks on the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses.

• On Wednesday, Trump met with Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards and had lunch with the Secretary of State.

• On Thursday, Trump met with New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and delivered remarks on protecting America’s senior citizens.

• On Friday, Trump had lunch with the Vice President and departed the White House for Camp David.

Federal Judiciary

• 81 federal judicial vacancies

• 43 pending nominations

• 6 future federal judicial vacancies

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