The hottest Judicial Review Substack posts right now

Lawmakers can exploit delays in the court system by passing laws they expect to lose and getting some effect before the laws are struck down, sometimes repeating variants to prolong enforcement.
One response is to neutralize harms after a law is overturned — refund fines, compensate those harmed, and reimburse legal costs — but invisible harms and imperfect refunds mean compensation will often be incomplete.
Another response is to change incentives: make lawmakers or the state bear costs for clearly unconstitutional laws, or require faster pre‑enforcement review or a short challenge window; these reduce abuse but come with practical and fairness trade‑offs.

A federal judge halted the CDC's January 2026 immunization memo and froze recent ACIP appointments and prior ACIP votes, which in practice blocks the administration's vaccine schedule reforms across the country.
The court relied on FACA and arbitrary-and-capricious reasoning to question the new ACIP's balance and member qualifications. Its treatment of a long-time vaccine researcher as lacking relevant expertise looks like judicial substitution for executive judgment.
The administration has strong grounds to appeal, arguing the stay functions like a nationwide injunction under APA §705 and raising core separation-of-powers questions about who gets to set public health policy. Higher courts may need to decide whether lower courts can use APA stays to produce nationwide effects despite limits on universal injunctions.

High Court judge refrained from launching contempt proceedings against the home secretary despite serious errors in handling an entry clearance application.
Home secretary acknowledged major errors made in the case and offered a sincere apology to the applicant and the tribunal.
Decision was made not to initiate contempt proceedings due to acknowledgment of breaches, apology, unintentional nature of breaches, and measures taken to prevent recurrence.

Building infrastructure in America has become very slow and difficult mainly due to environmental regulations like the National Environmental Policy Act. These rules, which were made to protect the environment, now often delay important projects for years.
Many energy projects are stuck in regulatory and court processes, making it hard to shift to cleaner energy sources. Reforming these regulations could help speed up the development of clean energy initiatives.
Judicial reviews and the ability of courts to issue injunctions often hold up projects unnecessarily. There needs to be a limit on how long these reviews can take to encourage investment in new infrastructure.

The president is trying to expand executive power by using emergency laws to impose tariffs and by asserting the right to remove officials from independent agencies, a push toward a stronger "unitary executive."
The tariff campaign has badly hurt farmers, prompting a $12 billion one-time bailout, while the administration has delayed economic reports that could reveal more damage.
Courts and Congress are starting to push back: the Supreme Court may limit the administration's claims, and lawmakers are demanding oversight and even withholding funds to get unedited military strike videos and constrain officials.

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Illegal immigrants have more legal protections than American citizens, making it hard for the government to enforce immigration laws.
Current judicial decisions are weakening the structure of the Constitution, leading to more issues like illegal entry and crime without consequences.
To fix these problems, changes in laws and court practices are needed to ensure that the Constitution works effectively for citizens.

States are creating laws that ignore federal immigration rules, which disrupts how immigration laws are enforced and can lead to dangerous situations.
Sanctuary policies can create a two-tier legal system, making some areas safer than others and allowing illegal activities to continue unchecked.
When courts do not enforce federal supremacy in immigration, it leads to a breakdown of the law, making it harder for the government to keep the country secure.

The Supreme Court ruled that states cannot remove Donald Trump from the 2024 presidential ballot, leading to a unanimous decision.
The court avoided defining the events of January 6, 2021, as an insurrection and went beyond the necessary scope in their ruling.
The court's decision hinted at a larger issue where courts are involving themselves in lawmaking rather than just judicial review.

The Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) is very vague and does not provide clear guidance on presidential power, making it problematic to rely on for decision-making.
The Youngstown test divides presidential power into three categories, but using the AUMF as proof of Congress's authorization raises questions about its true validity and support.
To strengthen Congress's control over presidential powers, it's suggested to have all presidential powers expire at the end of each Congress, so they can be re-evaluated and voted on anew.