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Texas v. Deb Haaland, Secretary of the Interior, et al.
Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, No. 18-11479 · judgment April 6, 2021
Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.
Questions presented
Consolidated with 21-376. The Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 U.S.C. §§ 1901-63 (ICWA), creates a childcustody regime for "Indian children," a status defined by a child's genetics and ancestry. This regime is designed to make the adoption of Indian children by non-Indians more difficult. To implement this race-based system, Congress required state agencies to provide services "to prevent the breakup of the Indian family" and imposed a placement hierarchy- which may be changed at a child's tribe's direction-favoring Indian-child adoptions by the child's biological relatives, the child's tribe, and then any other Indian. Congress then directed state courts to employ a detailed federal set of procedures in state-law Indian-child-custody proceedings. The questions presented are:
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Whether Congress has the power under the Indian Commerce Clause or otherwise to enact laws governing state child-custody proceedings merely because the child is or may be an Indian.
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Whether the Indian classifications used in ICWA and its implementing regulations violate the Fifth Amendment's equal-protection guarantee.
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Whether ICWA and its implementing regulations violate the anticommandeering doctrine by requiring States to implement Congress's child-custody regime.
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Whether ICWA and its implementing regulations violate the nondelegation doctrine by allowing individual tribes to alter the placement preferences enacted by Congress.
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Judd Edward Stone II
Texas Attorney General's Office
For respondent
Ian Heath Gershengorn
Jenner & Block
Argument & decision
Argued November 9, 2022 — Matthew D. McGill · Judd E. Stone · Edwin S. Kneedler · Ian H. Gers.... Audio and transcript
Decided June 15, 2023. Opinion by Barrett.
Proceedings
- Jul 17 2023Judgment issued.
- Jun 15 2023Adjudged to be AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, VACATED AND REMANDED IN PART. Barrett, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Sotomayor, Kagan, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Jackson, JJ., joined. Gorsuch, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which Sotomayor and Jackson, JJ., joined as to Parts I and III. Kavanaugh, J., filed a concurring opinion. Thomas, J., and Alito, J., filed dissenting opinions. VIDED.
- Nov 09 2022Argued. For Chad Everet Brackeen, et al.: Matthew D. McGill, Washington, D. C. For Texas: Judd E. Stone, II, Solicitor General, Austin, Tex. For federal parties: Edwin S. Kneedler, Deputy Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. For tribal parties: Ian H. Gershengorn, Washington, D. C. VIDED.
- Sep 13 2022The record received from the U.S.D.C. Northern District of Texas has been electronically filed.
- Sep 12 2022Record requested from the U.S.C.A. 5th Circuit.
- Sep 12 2022The record from the U.S.C.A. 5th circuit is electronic and located on Pacer.
- Aug 31 2022CIRCULATED
- Aug 03 2022ARGUMENT SET FOR Wednesday, November 9, 2022. VIDED.
- Jul 21 2022Blanket Consent filed by Respondent, Navajo Nation
- Feb 28 2022Petition GRANTED. The petitions for writs of certiorari in Nos. 21-376, 21-377, and 21-380 are granted. The cases are consolidated, and a total of one hour is allotted for oral argument. Parties that were plaintiffs/appellees in the lower courts shall file opening and reply briefs in conformity with Rules 33.1(g)(v) and 33.1(g)(vii), under the schedule set forth in Rules 25.1 and 25.3. Parties that were defendants/appellants in the lower courts shall file briefs in conformity with Rule 33.1(g)(vi), under the schedule set forth in Rule 25.2.
- Feb 28 2022Because the Court has consolidated these cases for briefing and oral argument, future filings and activity in the cases will now be reflected on the docket of No. 21-376. Subsequent filings in these cases must therefore be submitted through the electronic filing system in No. 21-376. Each document submitted in connection with one or more of these cases must include on its cover the case number and caption for each case in which the filing is intended to be submitted. Where a filing is submitted in fewer than all of the cases, the docket entry will reflect the case number(s) in which the filing is submitted; a document filed in all of the consolidated cases will be noted as “VIDED.”
- Feb 22 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/25/2022.
- Feb 11 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/18/2022.
- Jan 18 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/21/2022.
- Jan 10 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/14/2022.
- Dec 22 2021DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/7/2022.
- Dec 17 2021Reply of petitioner Texas filed.
- Dec 08 2021Brief of respondents Cherokee Nation, et al. in opposition filed.
- Dec 08 2021Brief of respondents Navajo Nation in opposition filed. VIDED.
- Dec 08 2021Brief of respondents Chad Everet Brackeen, et al. filed. VIDED.
- Dec 08 2021Brief of respondents Federal respondents in opposition filed.
- Nov 02 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including December 8, 2021, for all respondents.
- Nov 01 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response from November 8, 2021 to December 8, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
- Oct 08 2021Brief amici curiae of Christian Alliance for Indian Child Welfare and ICWA Children and Families filed. VIDED.
- Oct 08 2021Brief amici curiae of Goldwater Institute, et al. filed.VIDED
- Oct 05 2021Brief amicus curiae of Project on Fair Representation filed.VIDED
- Oct 04 2021Brief amicus curiae of Ohio filed.VIDED
- Sep 27 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including November 8, 2021, for all respondents.
- Sep 24 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response from October 8, 2021 to November 8, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
- Sep 03 2021Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due October 8, 2021)