Supreme Court of the United States · Official docket →
James Harper v. Michael Faulkender, Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue Service, et al.
Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, No. 23-1565 · judgment September 24, 2024
Before the decision, modestly above the 4.1% base rate. The model weighted this up for counsel who has won certiorari before and a First Circuit decision below.
Question presented
The Internal Revenue Service used a subpoena to obtain without a warrant from a cryptocurrency exchange three years of transaction records concerning over 14,000 of the exchange’s customers, including Petitioner James Harper’s records. Mr. Harper’s contract with the exchange made clear that the records belonged to him and that the exchange would protect his privacy. The transaction records at issue opened an especially intimate window into Harper’s life because they not only revealed his historical cryptocurrency transactions but also enabled tracking of his transactions into the future. The court below relied on the third-party doctrine to hold that IRS’s warrantless search and seizure of Harper’s financial records did not violate the Fourth Amendment. The question presented is: Does the Fourth Amendment permit warrantless searches of customer records held by third-party service providers if the records are contractually owned by the customer, or if those records enable surveillance of future behavior? If not, does the thirdparty doctrine need to be discarded or modified to prevent such searches?
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Kannon K. Shanmugam
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
For respondent
D. John Sauer
Solicitor General
Proceedings
- Jun 30 2025Motion for leave to file amicus brief filed by Professor Adam J. MacLeod GRANTED.
- Jun 30 2025Petition DENIED.
- Jun 12 2025Reply of petitioner James Harper filed. (Distributed)
- Jun 10 2025DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 6/26/2025.
- Jun 09 2025Waiver of the 14-day waiting period for the distribution of the petition pursuant to Rule 15.5 filed by petitioner.
- May 30 2025Brief of respondents Micheal Faulkender, Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue Service, et al. in opposition filed
- Apr 30 2025Brief amicus curiae of Coinbase, Inc. filed.
- Apr 30 2025Brief amicus curiae of Project for Privacy & Surveillance Accountability filed.
- Apr 04 2025Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including May 30, 2025.
- Apr 03 2025Motion to extend the time to file a response from April 30, 2025 to May 30, 2025, submitted to The Clerk.
- Mar 31 2025Response Requested. (Due April 30, 2025)
- Mar 28 2025Brief amicus curiae of X Corp. filed.
- Mar 28 2025Brief amicus curiae of DeFi Education Fund filed.
- Mar 28 2025Motion for leave to file amicus brief filed by Professor Adam J. MacLeod.
- Mar 28 2025Brief amici curiae of West Virginia, et al. filed.
- Mar 28 2025Brief amicus curiae of Cato Institute filed.
- Mar 28 2025Brief amicus curiae of Americans for Prosperity Foundation filed.
- Mar 28 2025Brief amicus curiae of NetChoice filed.
- Mar 27 2025Brief amici curiae of Kansas Justice Institute, et al. filed.
- Mar 26 2025DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/17/2025.
- Mar 20 2025Waiver of right of respondent Federal Parties to respond filed.
- Feb 21 2025Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due March 28, 2025)
- Dec 05 2024Application (24A549) granted by Justice Jackson extending the time to file until February 21, 2025.
- Dec 02 2024Application (24A549) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from December 23, 2024 to February 21, 2025, submitted to Justice Jackson.