Ok, it's time let the grownups take control again. This has been fun!
Good morning, everyone! Thanks for joining us, and thanks SO much to the First Mondays crew for joining us again today.
And, as in the past few days, I will say this lovingly: We don't know how many opinions we are going to get, nor do we know which ones.
No boxes yet, for those who are interested. To answer a couple of questions from past live blogs, I would say that three of the boxes used to hold opinions at the PIO are roughly the size, collectively, of one banker's box.
To answer another question, I am sitting in the press room, which is adjacent to the Public Information Office, where we get the opinions as they are released. It's about a 10-yard trip (if that) from the desk in the PIO where we get the opinions to my desk in the press room. So it doesn't take me very long, although when there are a lot of reporters here it can get a little congested going in and out of the PIO.
Two boxes today. And the five-minute buzzer just sounded. Mark Walsh has already gone up to the courtroom to give us a "view" on the goings-on there today.
Can you tell I'm really excited?
And have also had too much caffeine?
Two boxes -- half way to two days of infinite glory.
Okay, going in to wait for opinions now. Back soon!
Gorsuch has the first opinion, in Wisconsin Central v. US. The Seventh Circuit is reversed and remanded.
Court says that employee stock options are NOT taxable compensation for purposes of the Railroad Retirement Tax Act because they are not "money remuneration."
I think this means big tax refunds for the railroads; not sure that there's a lot of broader significance.
It is 5-4; Breyer dissents, joined by Ginsburg, Sotomayor, and Kagan.
Gorsuch is still reading from his summary of the opinion; I am not sure that there's a whole lot else that I'm going to say about the ruling right now unless Breyer dissents from the bench, which seems unlikely.
I will point out that, under the Court's normal opinion announcement rules, we could get opinions again from Gorsuch or anyone else today. The possibilities are endless!
Interesting to see the RR employer and employee join forces on this issue.
We have the next opinion, Lucia v. SEC, from Justice Kagan.
The DC Circuit's decision is reversed and remanded. This is a big deal.
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