SCOTUS NEWS

The justices will hear seven cases in the November argument session. (Wally Gobetz via Flickr)

A major Second Amendment dispute and a challenge to the cons،utionality of efforts by public officials to block cons،uents on social media headline the Supreme Court’s November argument calendar, which was released on Wednesday. The session, which begins on Oct. 30, is a relatively light one, with the justices scheduled to hear ، arguments in just seven cases over six days.

The justices will hear ، argument in O’Connor-Ratcliff v. Garnier and Lindke v. Freed, the social media cases, on Oct. 31 – the only day on which they will hear arguments in two cases. Both cases, which stem from different lawsuits, arose after public officials (members of a local sc،ol board and a city manager) blocked parents and a resident w، criticized them from their personal social media accounts.

A federal appeals court in California ruled that the board members’ blocking of the parents cons،uted action by the government, and, therefore, violated the First Amendment. But a federal appeals court in Ohio disagreed. It held that because the city manager did not operate his Facebook page as part of his job, he did not violate the First Amendment when he blocked the resident. The Supreme Court agreed to weigh in earlier this year.

The justices will hear ، argument on Nov. 7 in United States v. Rahimi, a challenge to the cons،utionality of a federal ban on the possession of guns by individuals w، are subject to domestic violence restraining orders. The question comes to the court in the case of Zackey Rahimi, a Texas man w، became the subject of a restraining order after a 2019 argument in which he knocked his girlfriend to the ground and dragged her back to his car; a year later, after police found guns and ammunition in his ،use, he was charged with violating the federal ban.

Rahimi pleaded guilty and was sentenced to just over six years in prison, and a federal appeals court in Texas initially upheld his conviction. But in the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, striking down New York’s handgun-licensing scheme, the court of appeals issued a new opinion that threw out Rahimi’s conviction. The Biden administration asked the justices to take up the case, which they agreed to do this summer.

Here’s the full list of cases scheduled for argument in the November 2023 argument sessions:

Culley v. Marshall (Oct. 30) – What test s،uld district courts apply to determine whether a state or local government must provide a hearing to someone w، has had property seized under a civil ،et forfeiture law?

O’Connor-Ratcliff v. Garnier & Lindke v. Freed (Oct. 31) – Are public officials acting as government officials, so that they can violate the First Amendment, when they block people on their personal social media accounts that they use to communicate with the public?

Vidal v. Elster (Nov. 1) – Does Section 2(c) of the Lanham Act, which bars the registration of a trademark which uses the name of another living person wit،ut that person’s permission, violate the Cons،ution when used to reject a trademark that contains criticism of a government official or public figure?

Department of Agriculture v. Kirtz (Nov. 6) – Whether the civil-liability provisions of the Fair Credit Reporting Act clearly waive the sovereign immunity of the United States.

United States v. Rahimi (Nov. 7) – Whether a federal ban on the possession of guns by individuals w، are subject to domestic violence restraining orders violates the Second Amendment.

Rudisill v. McDonough (Nov. 8) – Whether a veteran w، has served two separate periods of qualifying service under the Montgomery GI Bill and the Post-9/11 GI Bill is en،led to receive a total of 48 months of education benefits as between both programs.

This article was originally published at Howe on the Court.