The Supreme Court cases you should be following

Hey readers,

It’s a huuuuuuge week for the judiciary system. Here’s what you need to know:

Up first: The Supreme Court's term starts.

In other news: Sam Bankman-Fried heads to trial, health care workers aim to strike, and why your phone will buzz out of the blue. 

Have thoughts, comments, or just want to chat? Email us at newsletter@vox.com.

— Izzie Ramirez, Future Perfect deputy editor

We’re tracking the biggest cases of the Supreme Court term

Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Supreme Court season is here. The 2023–2024 term launched earlier this week — with cases that might transform the scope of the federal government, voting rights, and the rights to free speech and public safety. Our dedicated Supreme Court reporter Ian Millhiser will be right there with you, explaining what matters and why.

The lowdown: The crucial thing to know is that the Supreme Court has an opportunity to reshape American life (again) this term, and it might just take it. Here are a few of the cases Ian will monitor:

• Starting today, the Court will hear a case on whether the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is unconstitutional. If the Court agrees with the previous decision — that this federal agency that protects both consumers and banks is unconstitutional — it could trigger the next Great Depression. So far, it seems like the justices may decide to keep the CFPB around.

• A rogue federal judge is making social media “censorship” the Supreme Court’s problem. The Texas state government wants to effectively seize control of moderation on platforms like X (Twitter), YouTube, and Facebook. It’s a whole mess. 

• Also up: whether people who have a domestic violence restraining order have a right to own guns. The Rahimi case could be used to add some coherence to previous guidance around using centuries old laws to define modern gun policy. As Ian points out, so far that guidance has caused problems: “Asking judges to determine whether any 18th-century laws resemble modern-day gun regulations is a bit like asking how James Madison would have regulated smartphones.”

The stakes: Whenever the Supreme Court moves to the right, it’s normal for the mix of cases heard by justices to also move rightward. Liberal lawyers tend to be more cautious — they don’t like to bring cases that might lose  — whereas conservative lawyers aim for moonshots. That’s led to this year’s docket, which features numerous cases conservatives are hoping will go their way. If justices were to decide in their favor, the US would become a far more conservative place.

That said, though, most of these arguments would have no chance of prevailing before a more moderate bench. If the Court were to agree with this year’s wild, conservative arguments, Ian says, that would mean it’s “been captured by a reactionary political movement that seems to be engaged in a systemic campaign to dismantle US state capacity.” 

Broad wins for conservatives this year would only further strengthen the perception the Court is the place for partisan rulemaking, and would only encourage conservative and far-right lawyers launch efforts to bring even more divisive cases before its justices next year.

Check out Ian’s Supreme Court landing page — bookmark it for continual updates.

SBF’s crypto empire crumbled. Now he’s on trial.

Dion Lee/Vox, Getty Images

Donald Trump isn’t the only one hanging out in a New York courtroom this week. Sam Bankman-Fried — the founder of the failed cryptocurrency exchange, FTX — is accused of defrauding customers and lying to bankers. Here’s what you need to know:

• Bankman-Fried was the poster boy for effective altruism, a movement that focuses on prioritizing evidence-based solutions and donations to causes that need help the most. When SBF wasn’t doing cryptocurrency stuff, he was funneling millions into philanthropic organizations, investment firms, and political candidates he believed would do the most good. [Vox]
   
• But the 30-year-old founder is accused of siphoning billions from FTX customers. Last November, a run on deposits forced the company to shut down withdrawals and revealed gaps in FTX’s accounting, launching investigations into Bankman-Fried and Alameda Research, a hedge fund he also owned. [Vox]
  
  

• When FTX collapsed, both customers and philanthropic organizations got screwed over. Customers lost their money, and due to the criminal allegations, philanthropic organizations suspended whatever grants they received. In an exclusive interview with Vox, Bankman-Fried explained his motivations. [Vox]
    

• The trial will last six weeks. Several of his colleagues have already pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate against him. [New York Times]

FYI, Vox was a recipient of a grant from Bankman-Fried’s family foundation for a reporting project. That project is on pause. Learn more here. 

🗣️“‘Just trust Ashton Kutcher’ is terrible public policy.”
 — Jared Trujillo, a former sex worker who teaches constitutional law at CUNY Law. Movie star Ashton Kutcher resigned from the board of Thorn, an anti-trafficking organization, after he faced controversy for supporting rapist Danny Masterson. [New York Magazine]

• Did you know you can check your climate risk? Pulling in more than 184 sets of data, the new US Climate Vulnerability Index is an interactive map that lets you plug in your ZIP code to find out the health, infrastructure, and economic factors that play into climate events. I spent a good hour or two exploring! Check it out here. 
  
  

• 75,000 health care workers are poised to strike. If the Kaiser Permanente workers do strike, it’ll be the largest health care strike in US history. Similar to what CVS pharmacists are fighting for, Kaiser Permanente workers are demanding significant improvements to staffing levels and wages. [Guardian]
  
  

• Your phone is going to buzz at 2:20 pm ET tomorrow. Don’t worry — it’s not nefarious. The federal government will be testing its emergency alert system. And working systems save lives. [CNN]
  
  

• Three dead in shooting at a Bangkok luxury mall. Police arrested a 14-year-old suspect Tuesday. Gun ownership in Thailand is not uncommon. [NBC News]

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