Summary: October 3rd marks the first day of the 2011 Supreme Court term. This term the Court will hear interesting cases concerning religious liberty, U.S. citizenship, television broadcasting regulation, employment, unions, and many others. A few notable cases include Hosanna-Tabor Church v. EEOC, concerning the scope of the religious "ministers exception" to federal workplace discrimination laws; M.B.Z. v. Clinton, determining whether the courts can enforce a federal statute governing how the Secretary of State is to record the birthplace of American citizens on passports and related documents; Mayo Collaborative Services v. Prometheus Laboratories Inc., regarding whether a patent claim preempts all uses of naturally occurring correlations between blood test results and patient health because well-known methods used to administer prescription drugs and test blood may involve "transformations" of body chemistry; FCC v. Fox Television, concerning the FCC’s findings that broadcasts including expletives and nudity were indecent within the meaning of statutory and regulatory prohibitions on indecent broadcasts, Knox v. SEIU, which examines whether a state may condition employment on the payment of a special union assessment intended solely for political and ideological expenditures without first providing a notice that includes information about that assessment and provides an opportunity to object to its exaction; and Sackett v. EPA, regarding whether petitioners may seek pre-enforcement judicial review of an administrative compliance order pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act. Featuring Mr. Michael A. Carvin of Jones Day; Mr. Thomas G. Hungar of Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP; Prof. Neal Katyal of Georgetown University Law Center; Prof. Adam Mossoff of George Mason University School of Law; Ms. Elizabeth P. Papez of Winston & Strawn LLP; Prof. Mark Rienzi of Catholic University Columbus School of Law; and Ms. Jan Crawford of CBS News as the moderator.
