CASE SUMMARY

The State of Louisiana moved to dissolve a consent decree governing how justices were elected to the Louisiana Supreme Court. The consent decree, resulting from a 1986 lawsuit, has been in place since 1992. The motion was denied by a district court judge on May 24, 2022. The state filed its notice of appeal of that order on May 25, 2022. More than a year later, on October 25, 2023, a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court judge's ruling 2-1. Louisiana moved for rehearing en banc. Months of briefing followed. The Fifth Circuit granted the state's motion for rehearing en banc.

On August 29, 2024, the Fifth Circuit issued an Opinion by Judge Engelhardt that the state of Louisiana had satisfied its obligations under the 1992 consent decree and ordered the decree dissolved.

CASE LIBRARY

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit - No. 22-30320

• Notice of Appeal - 5/25/22
• Letter to the Court from the Deputy Solicitor General of Louisiana - 6/29/22
• Appellant's Opening Brief - 8/24/22
• Extension Request from the United States - 9/8/22
• Extension Request from Plaintiffs-Appellees - 9/13/22
• Brief for the United States as Intervenor-Appellee - 10/24/22
• Governor John Bel Edwards' Brief as Amicus Curiae in Opposition to Appellee, State of Louisiana - 10/24/22
• Alternative Motion of John Bel Edwards [...] for Leave to Appear as Amicus Curiae in Opposition to Appellee - 10/24/22
• Brief of Intervenor Plaintiff-Appellee Bernette J. Johnson - 10/24/22
• Brief for Ronald Chisom, Marie Bookman, and Urban League of Louisiana, Plaintiffs-Appellees - 10/24/22
• Order - 10/26/22
• Oral Argument Scheduled - 1/3/23
• Opinion - 10/25/23
• Judgment - 10/25/23
• Petition for Rehearing En Banc - 11/8/23
• Call for Response - 11/9/23
• United States' Unopposed Motion for an Extension of Time to File its Response to Appellant's Petition for Rehearing En Banc - 11/13/23
• Order - 11/13/23
• Chisom Plaintiffs' Unopposed Motion for an Extension of Time to File its Response to Appellant's Petition for Rehearing En Banc - 11/13/23
• Brief of Mississippi and Texas as Amici Curiae in Support of Defendant-Appellant's Petition for Rehearing En Banc - 11/15/23
• Order - 11/15/23
• Motion for Leave to File Brief of the Louisiana School Boards Association as Amicus Curiae [...] - 11/15/23
• Intervenor Plaintiff-Appellee Johnson's Unopposed Motion for an Extension of Time to File Response [...] - 11/15/23
• Amicus Curiae Brief in Support of Appellant's Petition for Rehearing En Banc - 11/15/23
• Order - 11/16/23
• Order - 11/16/23
• Opposition of the United States to Appellant's Petition for Rehearing En Banc - 11/30/23
• Opposition to En Banc Rehearing by Ronald Chisom, Marie Bookman, and Urban League of Louisiana, Plaintiffs-Appellees - 11/30/23
• Opposition to En Banc Rehearing by Plaintiff-Appellee Bernette J. Johnson - 11/30/23
• Order Granting Petition for Rehearing En Banc - 1/29/24
• The State's En Banc Supplemental Brief - 2/28/24
• Brief of Mississippi and Texas as Amici Curiae in Support of Defendant-Appellant and Reversal - 3/6/24
• Motion for Leave to File Brief of [LSBA] as Amicus Curiae in Support of Defendant-Appellant and Reversal - 3/6/24
• Order - 3/15/24
• Brief of Mississippi and Texas as Amici Curiae in Support of Defendant-Appellant and Reversal - 3/15/24
• Brief of Louisiana School Boards Association as Amicus Curiae in Support of Defendant-Appellant and Reversal - 3/15/24
• Case Calendared for Oral Argument on May 14, 2024 - 3/26/24
• Supplemental En Banc Brief of the United States as Intervenor-Appellee - 3/29/24
• En Banc Supplemental Brief of Intervenor Plaintiff-Appellee Bernette J. Johnson - 3/29/24
• En Banc Supplemental Brief for Plaintiffs-Appellees Ronald Chisom, Marie Bookman, and Urban League of Louisiana - 3/29/24
• Motion for Leave to File Brief for Amici Curiae [LSU] Black Law Students Association [et.al] in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellees - 4/5/24
• Unopposed Motion for Leave to File Brief of Remedies Scholars as Amicus Curiae in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellees' [...] - 4/5/24
• Order - 4/12/24
• Brief of Remedies Scholars as Amicus Curiae in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellees' [...] - 4/12/24
• Brief for Amici Curiae [LSU] Black Law Students Association [et.al] in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellees - 4/12/24
• Motion for Leave to File Corrected Brief for Amici Curiae [LSU] Black Law Students Association [et.al] in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellees - 4/19/24
• Order - 4/22/24
• Corrected Brief for Amici Curiae [LSU] Black Law Students Association [et.al] in Support of Plaintiffs-Appellees - 4/22/24
• Letter to the Clerk of the Fifth Circuit from LDF - 5/6/24
• Letter to the Clerk of the Fifth Circuit from LDF - 5/10/24
• Notice to Parties - 5/14/24
• Letter to the Clerk of the Fifth Circuit from LDF - 5/14/24
• Opinion - 8/29/24
• Judgment on Rehearing En Banc - 8/29/24
• Mandate - 10/21/24