POLITICS • 9 MIN READ
How the Supreme Court could wind up scrapping high-profile precedents in coming months

By John Fritze
6 HR AGO


Supporters of gay marriage stand beneath a large Pride flag in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on April 28, 2015.

The Supreme Court’s landmark opinion on same-sex marriage isn’t the only high-profile precedent the justices will have an opportunity to tinker with – or entirely scrap – when the court reconvenes this fall. … From a 1935 opinion that has complicated President Donald Trump’s effort to consolidate power to a 2000 decision that deals with prayer at high school football games, the court will soon juggle a series of appeals seeking to overturn prior decisions that critics say are “outdated,” “poorly reasoned” or “egregiously wrong.”

While many of those decisions are not as prominent as the court’s 2015 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges that gave same-sex couples access to marriage nationwide, some may be more likely to find a receptive audience.

Generally, both conservative and liberal justices are reticent to engage in do-overs because it undermines stability in the law. And independent data suggests the high court under Chief Justice John Roberts has been less willing to upend past rulings on average than earlier courts.

But the Supreme Court’s 6-3 conservative majority hasn’t shied from overturning precedent in recent years – notably on abortion but also affirmative action and government regulations. The court’s approval in polling has never fully recovered from its 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which established the constitutional right to abortion. … Here are some past rulings the court could reconsider in the coming months.

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