Three partners from Goodell DeVries will be among the presenters at the Maryland State Bar Association's 2024 Legal Summit (June 5-7).
United States Supreme Court: Term in Review
Derek Stikeleather, Chair of the firm’s Appellate Practice Group and Co-Chair of the MSBA's Appellate Practice Committee, will moderate the panel discussion “United States Supreme Court: Term in Review.” The panel will discuss key U.S. Supreme Court decisions from the 2023 term and preview decisions anticipated as the term draws to a close. Panelists will discuss cases of national importance and of practical importance to Maryland practitioners.
Second Thoughts: The Evolving Landscape of Second Amendment Law
Intellectual Property lawyer Jim Astrachan will speak on current developments in Second Amendment law.
Ever since the Supreme Court's landmark 2010 decision in District of Columbia v. Heller, courts have struggled to make sense of the full scope and limitations of the Second Amendment's right to keep and bear arms. With every seeming clarification, more questions arise, and legislatures have responded with increasing creativity and nuance. This presentation provides a real-time examination of the landscape of the Second Amendment right. It explores the various issues currently being litigated and legislated, from the types of weapons (and accessories) that may be banned outright, who may be prohibited from possessing a weapon, the "sensitive places" where the carrying of weapons may be prohibited, and many more.
Defamation, the First Amendment and the Press; Where Might the Supreme Court be Headed?
Jim will also deliver a presentation on defamation, the First Amendment, and the press. Sixty years ago, Justice Brennan wrote in NYT v. Sullivan the media “must be protected if freedoms of expression are to have breathing space they need to survive.” Is the Supreme Court looking to reduce this protection? This program will explore the history of defamation, the media, and the First Amendment, including the restrictions on bringing defamation actions imposed by earlier decisions of the Supreme Court. It will look at some recent cases that have attempted to reach the Court to pare back these restrictions and examine what sort of case the Court may be looking for to make defamation suits against the media easier to bring.
All About Administrative Deference—If it Still Exists
Administrative law attorney John Grimm will present a session on the doctrine of Chevron deference.
This term, the U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to abolish the doctrine of Chevron deference, which has been a bedrock of administrative law for decades. Many practitioners are aware that deference principles exist in administrative law, but the specifics of what gets deferred to and when are often unfamiliar. Yet deference principles are foundational to how modern administrative agencies function, and a decision by the Supreme Court to abolish those principles could have a seismic effect on how the government regulates. So, what even is Chevron deference, and how did we get here? This program will trace the development of the traditional categories of deference principles courts apply when interpreting decisions of administrative agencies and then explore recent developments up to the latest cases—which may or may not have been decided by the time the Annual Summit is held! Topics will include:
- The Chevron/Skidmore/Auer trinity and how they operate (if they still do)
- Emerging trends like the Major Questions Doctrine
- What a post-Chevron world might look like
- Where Maryland administrative law fits in with all this
Visit the Legal Summit agenda for these and more informative sessions here.
