Supreme Court Rulings

The U.S. Supreme Court is taking a close look at a question individual investors have long asked about their mutual funds, but the courts have largely ignored: Why am I getting charged twice as much as big institutional clients? Sure enough, the money-management services that different classes of fund clients get aren't the same. Institutions like pension funds and foundations may not need toll-free customer hotlines. They don't require as many of the prospectuses and other fund reports that individuals often throw away, even though they're printed and mailed at great expense. Individuals move relatively paltry sums in and out of a fund, piling ... Read Full Story

He's a right-leaning New Jersey native with a lifelong love of the Phillies. She's a liberal New Yorker who grew up near Yankee Stadium. They're eying each other warily these days from opposite ends of the Supreme Court bench. Justices Samuel Alito and Sonia Sotomayor make no secret of their rooting interests in the World Series, though neither would say whether they have a wager on the outcome. Alito was unusually quiet when the court met Monday. Was he glum over the ninth-inning meltdown by Phillies closer Brad Lidge in the team's loss Sunday night? He was more verbal Tuesday, asking questions a day ... Read Full Story

Clarence Thomas, the justice long known as the silent member of the Supreme Court, criticized his colleagues Friday for badgering attorneys rather than letting them speak during oral arguments. Thomas — who hasn't asked a lawyer a question during arguments in nearly four years — said he and the other eight justices virtually always know where they stand on a case by reading legal briefs before oral arguments. "So why do you beat up on people if you already know? I don't know, because I don't beat up on 'em. I refuse to participate. I don't like it, so I don't do it," Thomas ... Read Full Story

Chief Justice John Roberts once famously and controversially described a judge's role as akin to an umpire who merely calls balls and strikes. On Wednesday, Roberts offered a new take on that argument in a Supreme Court case about whether lawyers who sued to force changes in Georgia's foster care program could receive extra pay for their efforts. A federal judge awarded the lawyers an extra $4.5 million on top of the $6 million they were due under a formula. U.S. District Judge Marvin Shoob said their work was the best he'd seen in 27 years on the bench. Georgia appealed Shoob's decision. Roberts ... Read Full Story

Hot-button issues including gun rights and counter-terrorism will be on the docket when the US Supreme Court, including newest member Sonia Sotomayor, begins a new term on Monday. The nation's highest court, whose decisions deeply affect US policy, will also go to work amid growing speculation over the possible departure of a judge. The nine justices have agreed to examine 55 cases this term. They will soon decide whether to add to that roster an appeal brought by Guantanamo Bay detainees who have been cleared for release and are seeking resettlement in the United States. Another sensitive case likely to be taken up by ... Read Full Story