Litigation

Citizens United: ?Where, oh Where??

By Peter Hardin

The Supreme Court’s deliberate pace in deciding a major campaign finance case already has been noted by Gavel Grab, which reported it is all but certain a decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission will not be released before Jan. 11.

Now, expert court-watchers are trying to guess what the delay means, both in determining an opinion and in affecting politics. The high court has asked in hearing arguments surrounding the case whether it should overturn major precedents limiting corporate spending on political campaigns.

“The court’s slow pace may complicate the next election cycle,” Richard L. Hasen, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, told the New York Times. “We’ve got the 2010 elections coming up, and it’s really hard to change the rules mid-stream.”

Tony Mauro wrote in The Blog of Legal Times that the delays may point “toward the kind of mix-and-match majority decision that will be hard to decipher–and harder to put into effect. With the 2010 congressional campaign season drawing near, that could mean confusion over the role that corporations can play in the next election.”

The court heard re-argument of Citizens United Sept. 9. You can also check out “Where is Citizens United” from The Volokh Conspiracy blog, or read more about a decision’s potential impact on both federal and state elections–including state judicial elections–by clicking here for earlier Gavel Grab posts.

Full post as published by The Gavel on December 15, 2009 (boomark / email).