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Magistrate Judge William Porter (E.D.Va.) on Tuesday held that the FBI may not search devices belonging to a Washington Post reporter seized by the government as part of an investigation into the unauthorized leak of classified documents. Judge Porter ruled that the government may retain limited information responsive to its search warrant and ordered “an independent judicial review of the seized materials” to identify such limited information and return the rest to the newspaper. (Memorandum Opinion and Order.) (WaPo.) (WSJ.) For background on the case, see prior Roundups.
Judge Eric C. Tostrud (D. Minn.) on Monday found the Trump administration in civil contempt for transferring a noncitizen detained by ICE to Texas in violation of a court order and then releasing him without his belongings. Judge Tostrud ordered the government to recoup the petitioner approximately $568 for his airfare to return to Minnesota. (Opinion and Order.)
The Trump administration on Tuesday appealed a decision by Judge Richard J. Leon (D.D.C.) blocking Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth from disciplining Sen. Mark Kelly. (Notice of Appeal.) For background on Judge Leon’s decision, see a previous Roundup.
The New York Times reported that President Trump’s issuing of tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 may prompt another round of lawsuits challenging the president’s statutory authority. (NYT.) Lev Menand and Joel Michaels argued that Trump’s issuance of a global tariff on imports under the section is illegal. (NYT.) Ilya Somin argued that if Trump’s new tariffs are upheld, “this action would undermine the constitutional system almost as much as the IEEPA tariffs did.” (The Boston Globe.)
President Trump delivered his State of the Union address on Tuesday evening. (Transcript.)
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the University of California on Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California alleging that the school failed to protect Jewish students and faculty from discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. (Complaint.) (NYT.)
Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked a spending bill to reopen the Department of Homeland Security, saying it did not address Democrats’ demands to impose restraints on federal immigration enforcement. (NYT.)
Amid contract negotiations between the Pentagon and AI company Anthropic, Secretary Hegseth reportedly threatened the company that if it does not concede to the Pentagon’s demands by Friday, the Trump administration will label the company a supply chain risk or invoke the Defense Production Act to compel the military’s use of the software. Anthropic has demanded its software not be used to surveil Americans or in autonomous weapons that lack human oversight. For background, see previous Roundups. (NYT.) (WSJ.)
A leader of the judicial branch’s administrative body asked lawmakers in a letter on Tuesday to grant the judiciary control over its courthouses and facilities, conditions of which have “reached a crisis point after decades of inadequate management and oversight” by an executive branch agency responsible for their management. (Letter.) (NYT.) (WaPo.)
William Baude drew parallels between the Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump and its decision 74 years ago in Youngstown Sheet & Tube v. Sawyer. (Divided Argument.)
Linda Greenhouse parsed an overlooked paragraph in Chief Justice John Roberts’ opinion in the tariffs decision to argue the justice is exasperated with President Trump. (NYT.)
Neal Katyal, who argued against the government in the tariffs case before the Supreme Court, demanded the government return the unlawfully collected duties to businesses that paid them. (WaPo.) For a primer on the issue of tariff refunds, see Jack Goldsmith’s chat with Matthew Seligman.
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
Blanche v. Perlmutter: The government filed an emergency application on October 27 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a district court interlocutory injunction that temporarily reinstated Shira Perlmutter to her role as Register of Copyrights while litigation over her removal continues. Chief Justice Roberts formally set a deadline of November 10 for a response to the application. Perlmutter submitted a response on November 10. Blanche submitted a reply on November 12. The Court deferred the application for stay on November 28 pending the Court’s decisions in Trump v. Slaughter and Trump v. Cook.
Trump v. Cook: The government filed an emergency application on September 18 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a preliminary injunction issued by a district court that blocked President Trump from removing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Cook filed an opposition to the request on the same day. The Chief Justice formally set a deadline of September 25 for a response to the application. Cook filed a response on September 25. On October 1, the Court deferred action on the stay application pending oral argument in January 2026 and established a supplemental briefing schedule. Additional amicus briefs were filed on October 29. Both sides filed supplemental briefs on November 19 and the Court heard oral argument on Jan. 21, 2026.