The Supreme Court is back in action

SCOTUS has officially begun its new term, coming out of the gate faster than Secretariat. As of yesterday, America's highest court agreed to hear a pair of cases in which families of terrorism victims allege that Google and Twitter should bear some responsibility for recent ISIS attacks.

🤔 Why's that a big deal?... At issue in these two cases is Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, one of the most important laws governing how the Internet works in America today. (Background)

And the big cases don't stop there. The justices must've been listening to Rihanna before this term, cuz they're going to work, work, work, work, work.

• 🗳️ Elections: Republicans from North Carolina are challenging a state supreme court ruling that threw out congressional districts drawn by the GOP-led state legislature due to partisan gerrymandering. The justices will consider whether state courts can order changes to federal elections in response to violations of their state constitutions.
• 🏳️‍🌈 LGBTQ rights: A Colorado web designer is challenging a state law preventing businesses from discriminating against customers on account of several factors, including sexual orientation. The plaintiff alleges that Colorado's law violates her First Amendment right to refuse to design wedding websites for same-sex customers.
• 🎓 Affirmative action: Two cases involving the University of North Carolina and Harvard University could end the practice of considering race in the admissions process, across public and private schools.

👀 Looking ahead… The Supreme Court typically ends its term in late June or early July, so you can expect to see final rulings in all these cases (and more) by then.

Stay tuned.