Weekly Federal Appeals Court Digest Highlights Key Rulings Across the U.S.

In the newest Short Circuit compilation, the D.C. Circuit blocked extensive construction projects pending congressional authorization, while a dissent mocked aesthetic objections over security concerns. The Fifth Circuit affirmed that immigration bonds are unavailable to any aliens, overturning a prior regulation that limited bonds to those already in the country. The Second Circuit revived a whistleblower retaliation claim that lower courts had dismissed as res judicata.

A coalition of disabled Texas voters was denied standing in an ADA challenge to new mail-in voting rules by the Fifth Circuit. The Sixth Circuit found a jail administrator protected by qualified immunity after failing to forward counsel-appointment forms, leading to a detainee’s 252-day incarceration. Other notable rulings include the Sixth Circuit’s rejection of qualified immunity for forced public urination, the Seventh Circuit’s dismissal of Indiana professors’ speech-rights suit, and the Ninth Circuit’s clarification that Section 230 immunity does not shield platforms from lawsuits. The roundup also touches on cases involving gas-stove regulations, DNA-testing challenges, and automated license-plate reader privacy concerns.