Latest 3 Cases: State v. Smith (Criminal Law), Park County Environmental Council v. Montana Department of Environmental Quality (Environmental ...

Severability in Larger Constitutional Context: Part Five in our Series on the California v. Texas Challenge to the Affordable Care Act

VIKRAM DAVID AMAR, EVAN CAMINKER, JASON MAZZONE

In this fifth of a series of columns examining the California v. Texas case challenging the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Illinois law dean Vikram David Amar, Michigan Law dean emeritus Evan Caminker, and Illinois law professor Jason Mazzone discuss severability in a larger context and explain why, in their view the majority and minority positions are partly right and partly wrong. The authors conclude that if the Court invalidates and enjoins the individual mandate, it should reject the challengers’ substantive express inseverability claim that the entire ACA remainder should be enjoined.

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State v. Smith

Citation: 2020 MT 304

Opinion Date: December 8, 2020

Judge: Gustafson

Areas of Law: Criminal Law

The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of solicitation of witness tampering and sentencing him to prison for ten years with four years suspended, holding that the district court made numerous errors during trial amounting to cumulative error requiring reversal. Specifically, the Supreme Court held that Defendant's conviction resulted, at least in part, from the prejudice of the irrelevant and extrinsic bad acts evidence erroneously admitted from void dire through the entire evidentiary presentation and that Defendant did not receive a fair trial as a result of the district court's erroneous rulings, mandating reversal of Defendant's conviction under the doctrine of cumulative error.

Park County Environmental Council v. Montana Department of Environmental Quality

Citation: 2020 MT 303

Opinion Date: December 8, 2020

Judge: Mike McGrath

Areas of Law: Environmental Law, Government & Administrative Law

The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the district court's ruling granting summary judgment to Park County Environmental Council and Greater Yellowstone Coalition and an order of vacatur of the challenged exploration license in this case, holding that the district court erred in part. Lucky Minerals, Inc. submitted an exploration application seeking authorization to conduct exploration activities within its privately-owned patented mine claim block. The Montana Department of Environmental Quality granted the exploration license. The district court voided Lucky's exploration license, concluding that the 2011 Montana Environmental Policy Act amendments were unconstitutional. The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part, holding that the district court did not err by vacating the exploration license and finding Mont. Code Ann. 75-1-206(6)(c) and (d) in violation of the Legislature's constitutional mandate to provide remedies adequate to prevent proscribed environmental harms under Mont. Const. Art. II, 3 and IX, 1.

Craig Tracts Homeowners' Ass'n v. Brown Drake, LLC

Citation: 2020 MT 305

Opinion Date: December 8, 2020

Judge: Mike McGrath

Areas of Law: Real Estate & Property Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the ruling of the district court determining that Brown Drake, LLC's operation of the Brown Drake Lodge did not violate the Craig Tracts Homeowners' Association's (HOA) amended covenant's requirement that the property be "used for residential purposes only," holding that the district court did not err. The HOA brought this action for injunctive and declaratory relief, alleging that Brown Drake's operation of the Lodge violated the amended covenants' requirement that property be used for residential purposes only. The district court ruled in favor of Brown Drake. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Brown Drake's operation of the Lodge did not violate the amendment covenants under the HOA.