The Supreme Court starts a new term Monday replete with cases that will test how far the conservative majority could reshape the nation’s laws when it comes to gun regulations, medication abortion, congressional redistricting and the power of federal regulatory agencies.
Some of the high-profile cases the justices will consider and decide before the end of June are follow-ups on the court’s politically controversial major decisions in the past two terms, when conservatives had a 6-3 majority. Some lower courts, and particularly the conservative-leaning U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New Orleans, have interpreted those decisions in a way that pushes the law further to the right.
As those issues return to the high court, the oral arguments and decisions could reveal how the conservative-majority court approaches cases in the future, said David Cole, the legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union.
