U.S. Supreme Court

There are many legal challenges to President Donald Trump's executive orders from funding cuts to diversity, equity and inclusion programs to the abrupt firings by the Department of Government Efficiency led by Elon Musk. The Conversation talked to Avi Soifer, former dean of the University of Hawaiʻi William S. Richardson School of Law.

The U.S. Supreme Court has decided not to step in on a pair of major climate cases brought by the City and County of Honolulu against several oil companies.

The Supreme Court has rejected a challenge to Hawaiʻi’s gun-licensing law, though three justices expressed a willingness to hear arguments over the issue later. The majority did not explain their reasoning in a brief order on Monday declining to take the case.

Second Amendment activists in Hawaiʻi are celebrating a recent legal change that allows them to carry not just guns but other weapons — from battle-axes to butterfly knives — openly in public.

Last month, the state Department of Transportation agreed to roll out a new plan to reduce carbon emissions after facing a lawsuit from a group of young plaintiffs. HPR's Savannah Harriman-Pote spoke with young people from across the country about the highs and lows of their legal battles.

A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling established that presidents have immunity from being prosecuted for exercising their “core” constitutional powers. Former University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa William S. Richardson School of Law Dean Aviam "Avi" Soifer talked about the what the decision means.

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that municipalities can enforce sit-lie and camping ordinances against homeless people, even if there aren't enough shelter beds available. HPR's Ashley Mizuo shares how this decision marks a significant shift in how cities can implement regulations.

The U.S. Supreme Court is deciding whether to take up Honolulu's lawsuit against major oil companies. As HPR's Savannah Harriman-Pote reports, the companies argue that emissions are a matter for the federal government rather than the Hawaiʻi court system, and therefore the case should be dismissed.

The federal lawsuit filed in March alleged that making applicants wait so long was the city's way of keeping the permitting process as restrictive as it was before a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that upended gun laws nationwide.

A U.S. Supreme Court decision may limit the authority of federal departments like the Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration. The “Chevron Doctrine” gives power to federal agencies to interpret vague laws like the Clean Air Act.