(Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court begins its new nine-month term on Monday with cases including guns, gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors, online pornography, federal regulatory powers over the storage of nuclear waste and vape products and lawsuits over securities fraud involving Nvidia and Facebook.
Here’s a look at some of the cases the justices will decide.
‘SPIRIT GUNS’
The issue of gun rights returns to the justices, who agreed to rule on the legality of a U.S. regulation aimed at curbing homemade “ghost guns,” as President Joe Biden’s administration challenges the growing use of these largely untraceable weapons in crimes nationwide fights. The government appealed after a lower court ruled that the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives exceeded its authority by issuing the rule targeting ghost gun parts and kits, which can be assembled at home in minutes are put. The arguments are set for October 8.
MEXICO GUN RIGHT PRIZE
A bid by US arms manufacturer Smith & Wesson and firearms wholesaler Interstate Arms to dismiss Mexico’s lawsuit accusing them of supporting the illegal trafficking of firearms to Mexican drug cartels will go to trial. They appealed a lower court’s refusal to dismiss the Mexican lawsuit under a 2005 U.S. law that largely protects gun makers from liability for crimes committed with their products. The lawsuit accused gun companies of knowingly maintaining a distribution system that results in weapons being trafficked to cartels in Mexico. No date has been set for the arguments.
TRANSGENDER RIGHTS
The court will decide the legality of a Republican-backed ban in Tennessee on gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors. The Biden administration appealed a lower court’s decision upholding Tennessee’s ban on medical treatments, including hormones and surgery, for minors with gender dysphoria. This refers to the significant distress that can result from the incongruence between a person’s gender identity and the sex he or she was assigned at birth. No date has been set for the arguments.
ONLINE PORNOGRAPHY
The justices will consider whether a Texas law requiring pornographic websites to verify the age of users in an effort to limit access to minors violates the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protections against violations of speech by the government. A trade group representing adult entertainment performers and companies appealed a lower court’s decision upholding the Republican-led state’s age verification measure, ruling that it likely did not violate the First Amendment. No date has been set for the arguments.
STORAGE OF NUCLEAR WASTE
The court will examine whether the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has the authority to grant nuclear waste storage facilities following a court ruling that upended decades of practice by declaring it does not. The Biden administration and a company licensed by the NRC to build a waste storage facility in Texas appealed the lower court’s ruling. The permit was challenged by the states of Texas and New Mexico, as well as oil industry interests. This case is yet another test of the power of US regulators. No date has been set for the arguments.
CREATED VAPE PRODUCTS
The court will hear the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s defense of the agency’s denial of applications from two companies to sell flavored vape products that it found to pose health risks to young consumers. A lower court ruled that the FDA failed to follow proper legal procedures under federal law when it denied applications to market their nicotine-containing products. This case is yet another test of the power of US regulators. No date has been set for the arguments.
NVIDIA SECURITIES FRAUD COURT LAW
The justices will hear Nvidia’s bid to end a securities fraud lawsuit accusing the artificial intelligence chipmaker of misleading investors about how much of its revenue went to the volatile cryptocurrency industry. Nvidia appealed after a lower court revived a proposed class action brought by California shareholders against the company and its CEO. Nvidia has become one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom. Arguments are scheduled for November 13.
FACEBOOK SECURITIES FRAUD COURT LAW
Also heading to court is an attempt by Meta’s Facebook to end a private securities fraud lawsuit accusing the social media platform of misleading investors about the company’s and third parties’ misuse of its user data. A lower court allowed a shareholder lawsuit filed in California and led by Amalgamated Bank to proceed. Arguments are scheduled for November 6.
DEATH PENALTY CASE
The court will hear a bid by death row Oklahoma inmate Richard Glossip, convicted in a 1997 murder-for-hire plot, for a new trial based on his claim that prosecutors improperly withheld certain evidence favorable to his defense. A lower court ruled that the newly obtained evidence would not have changed the outcome of the case. The Supreme Court stayed Glossip’s planned execution in 2023. Arguments are scheduled for October 9.
(Compiled by Andrew Chung and John Kruzel; Editing by Will Dunham)
