This has been the most controversial Supreme Court session in many years, and we want to recap some of the more significant recent decisions, as well as let you know about some important new information for July bar exam takers.

 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization

 As you have likely heard, the Court voted 6 to 3 to uphold a restrictive Mississippi abortion law. The majority five vote opinion eliminated the fundamental right to abortion established nearly 50 years ago in Roe v. Wade. Justice John Roberts agreed with the majority  decision of the case, but did not concur with its premise that there was no fundamental right to an abortion that should be Constitutionally protected. The outcome was telegraphed earlier this year in the leaked draft, but the final ruling immediately reshaped the political landscape and cleared the way for several states to fully ban abortion access.

 New York State Rifle & Pistol Assoc. v. Bruen

In the first major Second Amendment ruling in over a decade, the Court stated that Americans have a fundamental Constitutional right to carry handguns outside their homes. The majority opinion, authored by Justice Thomas, struck down a long-standing New York law requiring a special need to be shown to legally carry a weapon in public, and put at risk similar laws in Maryland, California, New Jersey, Hawaii and Massachusetts.

 Biden v. Texas 

The Court ruled that the Biden administration has the Constitutional authority to reverse a Trump-era policy that requires asylum seekers to remain in Mexico while their cases are reviewed in U.S. courts. Justices Roberts and Kavanaugh joined the court’s three liberal Justices in stating that federal immigration law gives the Executive branch broad policy discretion in this field.

 Kennedy v. Bremerton School District

The Court sided with a former high school football coach who was fired after leading postgame prayers on the 50-yard line with his players. Neil Gorsuch, writing for the conservative majority, said the coach’s prayers at the public school event were protected by the Constitution’s guarantees of free speech and religious exercise, and did not violate the prohibition on government endorsement of religion.

And in an important announcement for those students taking the bar exam at the end of this month, the National Conference of Bar Examiners made clear that exam takers will not need to be familiar with any of the Court’s rulings this session, as these will not be tested in any way on the July 2022 bar exam.  

Good, one less thing to worry about!

 You can read more about these new decisions here.

There is now about 2 weeks remaining until the July Bar Exam. It’s not too late to get last minute help understanding concepts that you still  don’t quite “get“ yet or learning how to score extra points on your essays. We can still provide this assistance to get you to pass before it’s too late. Learn more about our famed bar exam tutoring program here.