Supreme Court opens new term with climate case and immigration appeals

The U.S. Supreme Court opens its new term Monday, with Chief Justice John Roberts calling the court into public session at 10 a.m. EDT for the first oral arguments, Fox News reported. ABC News reported the court reconvenes on the eve of the midterm elections, and The Hill reported its public approval stands near record lows. CNN reported the justices retake the bench without the separation-of-powers blockbusters that defined the last term; Bloomberg said the court is again taking up the president's sweeping assertions of power, “and maybe the midterms.” [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]

The first case is a climate dispute. Fox News described a federal-state environmental case over holding oil and gas companies liable for climate change harms. ABC News called it a first-of-its-kind bid by local governments to sue energy companies for damages over alleged harms from fossil fuels, with potentially billions of dollars on the line. Axios reported the case could determine the fate of state-court lawsuits nationwide seeking climate damages from oil giants. [ 1 , 4 , 5 ]

The court recently agreed to hear two immigration appeals, according to The Hill, CNN, ABC News and Axios: whether officials give enough due process before deporting migrants to third countries where they have no ties, and the legality of the administration's mandatory detention policy. The Hill reported decisions are expected by summer. Axios noted the court rejected an attempt to undermine birthright citizenship last term but handed the administration a number of immigration wins. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]

Other cases include whether states can ban semi-automatic weapons such as the AR-15, deny federal ballots to voters who do not provide proof of citizenship on state registration forms, and block religious schools from taxpayer-funded programs when they discriminate against LGBTQ+ families, ABC News reported. ABC said the court is also considering whether to weigh in on Ten Commandments displays in classrooms, shields for providers who mail abortion pills out of state, and regulation of prediction markets. CNN reported the court has granted 28 cases so far this term, less than half of what the justices will likely decide by June. [ 3 , 4 ]

The term opens against a strained relationship between President Donald Trump and the justices. Trump told Time magazine the conservative justices he appointed had voted against him too often; The Hill quoted him saying, “They voted against me too often,” and Axios quoted, “I gave them the chance of a lifetime, and it's unfortunate what they did.” CNN reported the justices will decide in coming weeks whether to take up his defamation case involving columnist E. Jean Carroll. [ 2 , 3 , 5 ]

ABC News reported cases are not expected to be decided before the November midterms. “The chief justice is in a tough position in that he is an institutionalist and a traditionalist at a time in our nation's history where a lot of institutions and traditions have come under pressure,” appellate attorney and former Justice Department official Thomas Dupree told Fox News. Genevieve Lakier, a constitutional scholar at the University of Chicago Law School, told ABC News that whether the court is “a Republican court” is “a very live question.” [ 1 , 4 ]