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Short Circuit: An inexhaustive weekly compendium of rulings from the federal courts of appeal
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Short Circuit: An inexhaustive weekly compendium of rulings from the federal courts of appeal
Brotherly crooks, dueling bourbons, and a law from 1785.
John Ross | 4.3.2026 3:30 PM
Please enjoy the latest edition of Short Circuit, a weekly feature written by a bunch of people at the Institute for Justice.
The day draws near for IJ's upcoming conference "The Other Declarations of 1776." As part of the nationwide celebration of 250 Years of America, we're partnering with the Liberty & Law Center at Scalia Law School for an examination of the various declarations of rights that the new states adopted in 1776. It's Friday, April 10 in Arlington, Va. You can still register here! And, if you want to learn more about those Other Declarations in the meantime, check out our series of blog posts, covering Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and, new this week, North Carolina.
New on the Short Circuit podcast: A certification request from the Eleventh Circuit to the Alabama Supreme Court radicalized IJ's Mike Greenberg into Erie abolitionism.
If you like comparing the EPA to the DMV then you'll love how the D.C. Circuit disapproved of the feds delegating endangered species compliance to the state of Florida. Well, you'll love the lead opinion. The concurrence only joins in part and takes issue with the DMV hypo while the dissent bequeaths an "in-the-weeds discussion of various overlapping environmental laws." Sometimes you can tell the clerk judge had a fun time writing an opinion. Such as this First Circuit decision. A sample of the literature: "Meet the Ponzo brothers, Chris and Joe . . . How the Ponzos became crooks and what they want from us is kind of a long story. But here's the short version . . . Life was good for the millionaire brothers. But the government eventually caught on." From the annals of "litigation takes a long time": Eleven American families filed suit in 2004 against the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority for the Second Intifada terror attacks in Israel. In 2015, a jury sides with the families and they're awarded $655 mil. Second Circuit (2016): Federal courts lack personal jurisdiction over the Palestinian groups for these claims. Congress (2018): Jurisdiction exists if certain requirements are met. Second Circuit (2019): Those requirements aren't met. Congress (2019): What we said before but more. Second Circuit (2023): That violates due process. SCOTUS (2025): It does not. Second Circuit (2026): Okay fine, we recall our mandate from our first go at the case and affirm the judgment and jury award. New York state prisoner arrives at a new facility with too much luggage. The extra items are legal materials he claims he has permission for. A fight ensues with prison staff which leads to disciplinary action which requires more legal materials and evidence. Which the prison denies. He's then sentenced to months of restricted confinement. Gov: There's no liberty interest here. Second Circuit: The conditions were "atypical" so there is and his due process claim can go forward.........© Reason.com
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