The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) has released its annual SCOTUS Preview, an analysis of some of the important civil rights cases before the United States Supreme Court during the upcoming Term, which begins October 4. Since 1940, LDF has served on the front lines of civil rights litigation efforts. Only the federal government has litigated more civil rights cases before the Supreme Court.
From policing to gun safety and the rights of residents of Puerto Rico to the future of abortion access itself, LDF’s analysis shows how the Court’s rulings this Term could have a seismic impact on the rights and daily lives of countless people living in the U.S. and its territories. This year’s preview features five cases: Thompson v. Clark; New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen; United States v. Vaello-Madero; Cummings v. Premier Rehab Keller, PLLC; and Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
“This will likely be one of the most consequential Supreme Court terms in living memory, and it is essential to provide a resource for the public to understand the important role that the Supreme Court plays in our democracy,” said LDF John Payton Appellate and Supreme Court Advocacy Fellow Mahogane Reed. “The SCOTUS Preview aims to make the public to be aware of some of the most important developments concerning civil rights jurisprudence through a straightforward analysis of the complex legal issues the Court will decide this Term. Our hope is that people use it as a tool to become more educated about the Court’s work and as a springboard for new or continued engagement with some of the most critical legal issues of our time.”
In each case snapshot, the SCOTUS Preview includes the question presented, the background of the case, the key legal issues, the case’s importance to civil rights, and a description of LDF’s amicus brief, if applicable.
LDF has also filed amicus briefs in several cases outlined in the SCOTUS Preview, including New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen and Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. In the former, LDF’s brief argues that New York’s gun safety regulations are constitutional, and that insofar as their application is racially discriminatory the proper remedy would be through the Equal Protection Clause of 14th Amendment. In the latter case, LDF’s brief argues that Supreme Court precedent clearly establishes a right to abortion access, and that the costs of restricting this right will fall heaviest on Black communities and other people of color.
Read LDF’s Supreme Court term preview here.
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Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization. LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or LDF. Follow LDF on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
