With the makeup of the Supreme Court now leaning toward the right with a 5-4 conservative majority, it was predicted that the court would be more likely to issue rulings that are in line with the plain text of the U.S. Constitution.
That appears to be true with regard to the court’s recent 5-4 ruling in the case of Franchise Tax Board of California v. Hyatt, which overturned a prior decision from 40 years ago that the current court held was inconsistent with the principle of states’ sovereign immunity.
Overturning precedent
The high court ruled on Monday that a state could not be sued by a private party in a different state unless it had first consented to be sued.
That decision reversed a 1979 Supreme Court ruling in the case of Nevada v. Hall, which declared that the Constitution offered no protection to individual states from private lawsuits originating in other states.
Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the majority opinion in the 5-4 decision. The four liberal justices were led in their dissenting opinion by Justice Stephen Breyer.
The liberal justices felt that prior court precedent should have been left alone and criticized the conservatives for overturning of a past ruling by a slim 5-4 majority, revealing their deeper concern that other longstanding precedents could be overturned in the future by a similarly narrow margin.
Thomas’ majority opinion
In the majority opinion, Thomas wrote that the 1979 ruling “misreads the historical record and misapprehends the ‘implicit ordering of relationships within the federal system necessary to make the Constitution a workable governing charter and to give each provision within that document the full effect intended by the Framers.'”
With regard to the precedent set in that case, Thomas wrote that it was “irreconcilable with our constitutional structure and with the historical evidence” which showed that states did enjoy sovereign immunity from private lawsuits
Broader implications?
The case at the heart of the court’s decision involved a dispute between a microchip inventor named Gilbert Hyatt who lived in Nevada and sued the California Franchise Tax Board in 1992.
Hyatt’s suit demanded that the tax agency compensate him for damages resulting from an audit it conducted on suspicion that Hyatt had moved from California to Nevada in order to avoid paying the state’s personal income tax. Hyatt alleged that the board shared personal information about him with business associates and unconstitutionally invaded his privacy.
This was actually the third time this particular case found its way to the Supreme Court, but it will almost assuredly be the last.
Now that the court has overturned its own prior ruling and found that Hyatt had no right to sue California from a Nevada courtroom absent its consent, liberal activists are left worrying about which other precedents may be vulnerable under fresh review.
1,958 Responses
Im obliged for the post. Much obliged.
Thanks-a-mundo for the blog.Much thanks again. Cool.
I cannot thank you enough for the blog post.Thanks Again. Really Great.
Its like you read my mind! You seem to know a lot about this, like you wrote the book in it or something. I think that you could do with some pics to drive the message home a little bit, but other than that, this is magnificent blog. A fantastic read. I’ll certainly be back.
Im obliged for the blog. Really Great.
A big thank you for your blog. Great.
I appreciate you sharing this blog.Thanks Again. Much obliged.
Im obliged for the blog post.Thanks Again. Keep writing.
Pretty! This has been a really wonderful post. Many thanks for providing this info.
Awesome blog article.Really looking forward to read more. Keep writing.
Nice post. I learn one thing more challenging on totally different blogs everyday. It’ll all the time be stimulating to read content material from other writers and practice a little one thing from their store. I’d choose to make use of some with the content on my blog whether you don’t mind. Natually I’ll provide you with a hyperlink on your net blog. Thanks for sharing.
It is the best time to make some plans for the future and it is time to be happy. I have read this post and if I could I wish to suggest you few interesting things or tips. Maybe you could write next articles referring to this article. I want to read more things about it!
Post writing is also a fun, if you know then you can write or else it is complicated to write.|
Very neat blog article.Much thanks again. Will read on…
Im obliged for the blog post.Really thank you! Cool.
Way cool! Some very valid points! I appreciate you penning this post and also the rest of the site is extremely good.
I truly appreciate this article post. Fantastic.
My partner and I stumbled over here different web address and thought I might as well check things out. I like what I see so i am just following you. Look forward to looking into your web page repeatedly.|
Hello, I enjoy reading through your post. I wanted to write a little comment to support you.|
I really like reading a post that can make people think. Also, thanks for allowing for me to comment!
bookmarked!!, I like your website!
Great article post.Really looking forward to read more. Awesome.
Pretty! This was an extremely wonderful article. Thanks for supplying this info.
Major thankies for the blog.Really thank you!
hey there and thank you in your information – I have definitely picked up anything new from proper here. I did then again experience several technical issues the usage of this website, since I skilled to reload the web site many times prior to I may get it to load properly. I were thinking about in case your web host is OK? Not that I am complaining, but sluggish loading cases times will often impact your placement in google and could damage your high quality ranking if advertising and ***********|advertising|advertising|advertising and *********** with Adwords. Anyway I am adding this RSS to my email and could look out for a lot more of your respective exciting content. Make sure you replace this once more very soon..
This blog was… how do I say it? Relevant!! Finally I have found something that helped me. Kudos!
Thanks for the article post.Really thank you! Keep writing.
I needed to put you that very little remark in order to thank you yet again for your gorgeous tactics you have shown here. It’s really extremely generous with people like you in giving extensively precisely what numerous people could have made available as an electronic book in making some dough for their own end, even more so considering that you could have done it if you ever decided. These tactics also served as a easy way to be certain that most people have similar zeal similar to my personal own to learn a good deal more related to this matter. I am sure there are lots of more pleasant times in the future for individuals that examine your blog.
There are definitely loads of details like that to take into consideration. That may be a great point to bring up. I offer the ideas above as general inspiration but clearly there are questions just like the one you convey up where a very powerful factor might be working in trustworthy good faith. I don?t know if best practices have emerged round issues like that, however I’m positive that your job is clearly recognized as a fair game. Each girls and boys really feel the influence of only a moment’s pleasure, for the rest of their lives.
Very good article.Thanks Again. Want more.
There’s definately a great deal to come across out about this issue. I love all the tips you’ve produced.
I wanted to send you that very small remark to help thank you so much again for your magnificent things you’ve documented on this page. It’s quite incredibly open-handed of you to present extensively what a lot of folks could possibly have distributed as an ebook to generate some cash on their own, especially since you could have done it if you ever decided. These ideas likewise served as the good way to recognize that someone else have a similar desire similar to my personal own to see great deal more when it comes to this problem. I am sure there are thousands of more pleasurable moments ahead for many who looked over your blog post.
You’re the best, It’s posts like this that keep me coming back and checking this blog regularly, thanks for the info!
I am so grateful for your article.Really thank you! Much obliged.
Nice answer back in return of this query with solid arguments and telling the whole thing about that.|
You need to participate in a contest for top-of-the-line blogs on the web. I will suggest this website!
I am not really fantastic with English but I find this real easygoing to interpret .
Very good post.Really looking forward to read more. Awesome.
I needed to thank you for this very good read!! I definitely loved every little bit of it. I have got you saved as a favorite to check out new things you post…
HI