scholarly journals US Supreme Court decides in favour of the Affordable Care Act

The Lancet ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 386 (9988) ◽  
pp. 2
Author(s):  
The Lancet
2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 64-78
Author(s):  
Leighton Vaughan Williams

This paper examines the 2012 US Supreme Court consideration of the Affordable Care Act, and the resulting judgment, with a view to learning what lessons this landmark case can afford us into the way in which the US Supreme Court works, so helping us forecast its decisions. Although this is simply one judgment among many, a case is advanced here that the details of the way that the judgment was made can be used to help arbitrate between conflicting interpretations in the literature as to the way that the US Supreme Court reaches its decisions. It is argued that consideration of this case does provide particular insights which might usefully improve forecasts of future Supreme Court decisions.


Significance Most of the cases to be heard between now and June remain to be chosen but the list so far reveals some extraordinarily important issues. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death and Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination overshadowed the court’s start, traditionally headline news. The court will not wait for a ninth member to start hearing cases or schedule new ones. Impacts An eight-member court still works: ties mean rehearings, narrower opinions or a non-precedential affirmation of the status quo. COVID-19 means the court will meet remotely; the pandemic also required rescheduling twelve cases left unheard last term. The Affordable Care Act cases were already deliberately scheduled for argument on November 10 -- after the elections. A fight between Congress members and the Justice Department over the Mueller report will be heard in December.


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