Supreme Court Update

The Supreme Court will close out its current term at the end of this month. Before it adjourns for the summer, it is expected to issue decisions in 20 remaining cases. Yesterday, the court released its opinion in one case of note. In Zivotofsky v. Kerry, the issue was a federal statute that allowed U.S. citizens born in Jerusalem to request that their passport indicate their place of birth as “Israel.” Executive branch policy gives “Jerusalem” as the place of birth, but not “Israel.” The court held, voting 6-3, that this statute was an unconstitutional infringement on the president’s exclusive authority to recognize foreign governments.

Notable cases still awaiting a decision include: