Tag Archives: Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court today heard arguments in a case that will further refine to what extent the makers of generic pharmaceutical drugs can be sued in state court. In Bartlett v. Mutual Pharmaceuticals, the justices will decide if federal law that governs the design of generic drugs preempts state consumer protection laws in cases where the drugs injure patients. Karen Bartlett was blinded and suffered horrific skin problems in 2004, with two-thirds of her body becoming an open wound, …

The United States Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday on whether DNA samples can be collected from crime suspects without a warrant. In Maryland v. King, the court is expected to decide whether the policy of 28 states and the federal government to swab DNA from arrestees is a violation of privacy rights, in what Justice Samuel Alito called “the most important criminal procedure case this Court has had in decades.” At issue is whether taking DNA constitutes an invasive search …

In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court Monday ruled that an alert by a trained drug-sniffing dog constitutes probable cause for a police search under most circumstances. In Florida v. Harris, the court rejected the notion that law enforcement would have to produce a detailed record of a dog’s reliability in order for its detection process to stand up in court, deciding that simple proof of training was enough. “If a bona fide organization has certified a dog after testing …

The federal government is safe from most lawsuits under the concept of immunity. But it may not be safe from itself: Its own lawyers decided an indigent prisoner who claims prison guards sexually assaulted him just might be right that he should be allowed to sue the federal government. The U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 19 heard oral arguments in Millbrook v. United States, a remarkable case originally brought by Kim Millbrook, a prisoner without a lawyer who reportedly hand-wrote …

The United States Supreme Court heard arguments today in a case that will determine if patents on genetically modified seeds also extend to the future generations of seeds that they produce. The justices appeared likely to affirm lower court findings that agriculture patents do protect multiple generations of GMO seeds, according to the Associated Press. The high court is hearing the appeal of Indiana farmer Vernon Bowman, who started buying GMO soy seeds from agriculture giant Monsanto in 1999. Monsanto’s …