The Supreme Court’s new term begins Monday with a handful of major cases set to be heard and the possibility that the justices will be asked to become involved in election disputes.
Here are some of the key issues that will be discussed in the coming months:
Transgender rights
The Biden administration and the families of transgender minors in Tennessee are challenging a federal appeals court ruling that upheld the state’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors. About half the states have implemented similar restrictions.
Ghost guns
The government is appealing a federal appeals court ruling that strikes down a regulation aimed at curbing the spread of hard-to-trace ghost guns, which do not have serial numbers.
Death penalty
Oklahoma’s Republican attorney general, along with death row inmate Richard Glossip, have called on the Supreme Court to throw out Glossip’s conviction and death sentence in a 1977 murder-for-hire scheme.
Pornography
The adult entertainment industry is challenging a provision of Texas law upheld by a federal appeals court that requires pornographic websites to verify the ages of their users.
Mexico’s gun lawsuit
Leading U.S. gun manufacturers want the Supreme Court to overturn an appeal ruling that upholds a $10 billion lawsuit filed by Mexico over allegations that the companies’ practices are responsible for violence in Mexico.
Nuclear waste
The Nuclear Regulatory Commissions want the court to reinstate permits it issued for temporary nuclear waste storage facilities in rural New Mexico and Texas after a federal appeals court overturned them.
Discrimination at work
An Ohio woman is asking the court to revive her workplace discrimination lawsuit, claiming she unfairly lost state jobs to LGBTQ people in violation of federal law.
Flavored vapours
The Food and Drug Administration is asking judges to overturn a decision that would allow the marketing of sugary e-cigarette products, amid concerns about the rise in vaping among young people in recent years.
