June 27 Opinion Summaries: Five Major Decisions That Will Shape America

SCOTUS Oral Arguments and Opinions

This episode provides a comprehensive analysis of five major Supreme Court decisions released on June 27, 2025, that collectively reshape key areas of constitutional law including judicial authority, parental rights, agency power, executive appointments, and online speech regulation. We also discuss the notable absence of a decision in Louisiana v. Callais, a complex redistricting case that many Court watchers expected to be resolved.

Cases Covered:

Trump v. CASA, Inc.

• Holding: Federal district courts lack authority to issue universal injunctions that prohibit government enforcement of policies against anyone beyond the named plaintiffs
• Vote: 6-3 (Barrett majority; Thomas, Alito, Kavanaugh concurrences; Sotomayor and Jackson dissents)

Mahmoud v. Taylor

• Holding: Parents challenging a school board's LGBTQ-inclusive storybooks and refusal to allow opt-outs are entitled to preliminary injunction under the Free Exercise Clause
• Vote: 6-3 (Alito majority; Thomas concurrence; Sotomayor dissent)

FCC v. Consumers' Research

• Holding: The FCC's universal service contribution scheme does not violate the Constitution's nondelegation doctrine
• Vote: 6-3 (Kagan majority; Kavanaugh and Jackson concurrences; Gorsuch dissent)

Kennedy v. Braidwood Management, Inc.

• Holding: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force members are inferior officers who can be constitutionally appointed by the HHS Secretary rather than requiring presidential nomination and Senate confirmation
• Vote: 6-3 (Kavanaugh majority; Thomas dissent)

Free Speech Coalition, Inc. v. Paxton

• Holding: Texas's age verification law for pornographic websites is constitutional under intermediate scrutiny rather than strict scrutiny
• Vote: 6-3 (Thomas majority; Kagan dissent)

Pending Cases: Louisiana v. Callais. On June 27, 2025, the Court stated that it will rehear this case.