On April 25, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Trump v. Hawaii, a case challenging President Trump’s third and latest ban on travel for nationals of several predominantly Muslim countries. The Court’s decision will most immediately impact the individuals who are barred indefinitely from coming to the United States, as well as their family members and extended communities here in the United States. But more broadly, the outcome in this case will have important repercussions for the ongoing meaningfulness of the First Amendment’s most basic protection against religious discrimination.
Our Work
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Judicial Selection
Every day, federal judges protect the Constitution, place a check on overzealous legislatures, and help Americans find justice.
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Bolder Advocacy
Demystifying and decoding advocacy by equipping organizations with knowledge and tools.
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Access to Justice
Over the past several decades, a conservative-led campaign has eviscerated the ability of Americans to have their day in court.
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Supreme Court
We fight to hold the court to the highest ethical standards, and we fight for a court that upholds the rights of everyday Americans.
Blog
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Judicial Nominee Allen Winsor’s Record Warrants Scrutiny
On April 10, 2018, President Trump nominated Allen Winsor to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida. Winsor, a current justice on Florida’s First District Court of Appeal, previously served as Solicitor General of Florida from 2013 to 2016, under Attorney General Pam Bondi. In that capacity, he defended several troubling laws, including repeated efforts in Florida to dilute the vote of persons of color and make it harder for Floridians to vote. He also advanced efforts to erode reproductive rights and marriage equality, as well as supported questionable practices as the state carried out the death penalty.
AFJ in the News
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Trump’s stealth victory: Reshaping the courts
With less than two years under his belt, President Trump has managed to make a substantial imprint on the U.S. judicial system — one that could be felt for decades to come — by getting the Senate to confirm key judicial nominees.
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Trump’s latest outrageous appointee: A judge who wants to shut down the EPA
After a hearing last Wednesday during which nominee Andrew Oldham tried, and frequently failed, to run away from his well-documented political views, the Senate Judiciary Committee delayed a vote on the Texas lawyer’s appointment to the Fifth Circuit Court, which covers Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Odds are, however, that it’s only a slight delay until the full Senate votes on Oldham.
Press Releases
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AFJ: Moving Forward on Bounds Nomination Marks a Dangerous Surrender to Trump
Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley’s decision to put Ryan Bounds’s nomination up for consideration this week is an affront to every senator’s constitutional role in judicial nominations, and a dangerous yielding of power to the Trump administration. Bounds’s nomination has been soundly rejected by both of his home state senators.
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AFJ: Ruling in Epic Systems v. Lewis Strikes Major Blow to Workers’ Rights
When nominated, it was clear that Neil Gorsuch would undermine the rights of workers to advance the interests of big business, whether ruling that a truck driver, Alfonse Madden, should have had to choose between his job or his life when his truck broke down in freezing conditions, or siding with a university that denied leave under disability rights laws to Grace Hwang, a cancer patient whose doctor told her she risked dying if she returned to work during a flu epidemic.
Featured Resource
Some Consequences of Deciding that Trump Cannot be Prosecuted in Office
Once again, Rudy Giuliani has filled the headlines with loose talk of his conversations with Mueller and his staff. He now reports that a member of Robert Mueller’s team confirmed that Mueller will not indict President Trump. Giuliani has demonstrated that there is little reason to take him at his word in his representation of Trump. Giuliani’s statement, however, reflects the consensus view that Mueller will adhere to Justice Department legal policy, which precludes indictment of a sitting president (though Mueller and Rod Rosenstein retain authority to surprise the experts). Whether Mueller or an assistant informed Giuliani that he would not indict Trump will remain unknown for now, but it is worthwhile to review some consequences of a decision that indictment is not an option.
