For decades, millions of American families have been dissatisfied with their local public schools, and the political parties have diverged in their approach to this problem. Democrats have generally supported providing more resources to public schools, while Republicans have favored giving families alternatives, such as vouchers to help pay private school tuition. In the…

  Did you know you can make over $200,000 a year and still be entitled to overtime pay? In Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. v. Hewitt, the en banc Fifth Circuit recently concluded as such. This surprising result was made possible by a Department of Labor regulation that requires some hourly employees to be paid…

  Because our elected branches of government can’t always be trusted to zealously keep one another in check, litigation by individual private citizens has long been among the most effective ways to enforce separation of powers and other structural constitutional boundaries. At least four recent cases involving the Securities and Exchange Commission underscore the power…

Photo: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission building Americans interact with the First Amendment every day, whether it be through watching the evening news, criticizing the government on Twitter, or attending weekly religious services. Integral to the American experience, most would tell you that the First Amendment protects rights to free speech, religion, and press. Yet,…

  A month ago, I was speaking with an associate at a DC law firm. I told him that I work at a non-profit, the “New Civil Liberties Alliance,” which represents parties in cases relating to administrative law. He appeared confused and asked how civil liberties are connected to administrative agencies. For those who have…

Photo: U.S. Marshals Service The Fourth Amendment protects Americans against unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. Absent exigent circumstances or consent, police must obtain judicial authorization (a warrant) to enter a home. As the Supreme Court has repeatedly stated, for example in Riley v. California, the sanctity of a person’s home is among an…