Friday round-up

Briefly:

• Atthis blog, former Solicitor General Charles Fried analyzes what he describes as the “four surprises” of the Courts decision in the health care cases.
• Chris Geidner of Buzzfeedreports on the brief filed before the Court by theGay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders in the challenges to the Defense of Marriage Act.
• TheBlog of Legal Timespreviews a panel discussion this Friday at the American Bar Associations annual meeting, in which Justice Ginsburg and Solicitor General Don Verrilli will join others in discussing the relationships between operatic arias and the law.
• Writing atReason, Damon W. Root creates a list of the ten most libertarian Supreme Court decisions. At theVolokh Conspiracy, Ilya Somin has additional commentary on Root’s list.
• AtACSblog, Nicole Flatowreports on an ACS video webinar with Valerie Newman on her experience representing the respondent at oral argument this past Term inLafler v. Cooper, in which the Court expanded the right to effective assistance of counsel into the plea-bargaining stage.
• At herOn the Caseblog for Thomson Reuters, Alison Frankel summarizes the arguments against extraterritorial application of the Alien Tort Statute made by the respondents supplemental brief before the Court inKiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, which the Court has scheduled for reargument this fall.
• ProPublicaexplores states’ varied responses tothe Courtsconsolidated opinioninMiller v. AlabamaandJackson v. Hobbs, in which it struck down mandatory life-without-parole sentences for juveniles, particularly regarding whether the opinion applies retroactively to juveniles previously sentenced under these laws.
• Writing for theAmerican Bar Association, Professor Rory Little summarizes the Courts opinion this past Term inWilliams v. Illinois, in which the Court held that the Confrontation Clause had not been violated where expert testimony was admitted regarding DNA testing performed by other, non-testifying analysts.
• At the Opinionatorblog of The New York Times, Timothy Egan revisits Justice Scalia’s recent interview with Piers Morgan, particularly its discussion ofCitizens Unitedv. FEC.
• NPRpreviews the legal challenges to the constitutionality of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act that the Court might consider this upcoming Term.