2019: Selected Filings, Presentations, and Media Mentions

• The amicus brief filed by Deutsch Hunt PLLC on December 13, 2019 on behalf of Casey Family Programs and thirty other child welfare organizations was described in an article about the efforts of tribes, States, members of Congress, non-profits, and other amici arguing in support of the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act in Brackeen v. Bernhardt, No. 18-11479 (5th Cir. en banc). Read Native Groups, Profs, States Champion ICWA to 5th Circ., Law 360 (Dec. 13, 2019) (subscription required).


• On November 14, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed an amicus brief in support of Respondents on behalf of Montana Constitutional Convention delegates in Espinoza v. Montana Dep't of Revenue, No. 18-1195 (S. Ct.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On October 29, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed an amicus brief in support of Plaintiffs-Appellees on behalf of scholars of standing, federal jurisdiction, and constitutional law, in Blumenthal v. Trump, No. 19-5237 (D.C. Cir.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On September 27, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America, American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, and the Texas Association of Business, in Energy Transfer Partners, LP v. Enterprise Products Partners, LP, No. 17-0862 (Tex.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On September 10, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a final brief on behalf of Investors Exchange LLC (IEX) as amicus curiae in support of the SEC, in New York Stock Exchange LLC v. SEC, Nos. 19-1042 et al. (D.C. Cir.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On September 6, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC, together with lead counsel Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, filed a brief on behalf of America's Health Insurance Plans as amicus curiae in support of Petitioners, in Maine Community Health Options v. United States, Nos. 18-1023 et al. (S. Ct.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On September 4, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed an opening brief on behalf of Defendants-Appellants in Thunder Studios, Inc. v. Kazal, No. 19-55413 (9th Cir.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On August 29, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a brief on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America as amicus curiae challenging the Court of Appeals' de facto officer ruling, in Financial Oversight & Mgmt. Bd. for Puerto Rico v. Aurelius Investment, LLC, Nos. 18-1334 et al. (S. Ct.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On August 9, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a brief on behalf of remedies scholars as amici curiae in support of Petitioners, in Hernandez v. Mesa, No. 17-1678 (S. Ct.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On July 29, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a brief on behalf of the Retail Litigation Center, the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention, and the Tennessee Retail Association as amici curiae in support of Tennessee, in Tennessee v. Welch, No. E2018-00240-SC-R11-CD (Tenn.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On July 8, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a final brief on behalf of Investors Exchange LLC (IEX) as amicus curiae in support of the SEC, in The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC and NYSE Arca, Inc. v. SEC, Nos. 18-1292, 18-1293 (D.C. Cir.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On July 2, 2019, Ruthanne Deutsch, along with another former law clerk for Justice Ginsburg, Dori Bernstein of the Georgetown Supreme Court Institute, joined Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg for a conversation discussing Justice Ginsburg's life, work and focus on gender equality. The Q&A session was part of a program that also included a panel discussion of Justice Ginsburg's jurisprudence.
  • Video of the program may be viewed on CSPAN.
  • Media coverage of the program included CBS News and CNN.


• On July 1, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a brief on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington, Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Washington Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, as amici curiae in support of Petitioner, in Slotemaker v. State, No. 78665-2-I (Wash. App.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On June 18, 2019, Hyland Hunt was quoted in an article discussing the impact of the Supreme Court's decision in Parker Drilling Management Services Ltd. v. Newton. Read Judy Greenwald, High court salary ruling seen having broader impact, Business Insurance (June 18, 2019) .


• On June 14, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a brief on behalf of America's Health Insurance Plans as amicus curiae in support of North Dakota, in Guardian Flight, LLC v. Godfread, Nos. 19-1343, 19-1381 (8th Cir.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On June 10, 2019, the Supreme Court issued a favorable decision for Petitioner in Parker Drilling Management Servs., Ltd. v. Newton, No. 18-389, a case in which Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed an amicus brief in support of Petitioner on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America. Describing it as "a close question of statutory interpretation," the Court unanimously held that state law applies on the outer continental shelf "only if federal law does not address the relevant issue." The Court found its textual reading reinforced by statutory context, because given "the primacy of federal law" on the outer continental shelf, it would make little sense for ordinary preemption principles to apply. The opinion can be found here.


• On June 3, 2019, the Supreme Court issued a favorable decision for respondent hospitals in Azar v. Allina Health Services, No. 17-1484. Deutsch Hunt PLLC represented the hospitals as co-counsel with Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. In a 7-1 decision written by Justice Gorsuch, the Court affirmed the D.C. Circuit, holding that the Medicare Act requires the Department of Health and Human Services to engage in notice-and-comment rulemaking before it can change the standard governing Medicare payment to hospitals for services furnished to low-income patients. The Court rejected the government's argument that the Medicare Act incorporates the APA's exception for interpretive rules, and held that "when the government establishes or changes an avowedly 'gap'-filling policy" for Medicare, it cannot evade notice and comment by contending that the policy is an interpretive rule. The opinion can be found here.


• On May 16, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC's amicus brief on behalf of Investors Exchange LLC (IEX) in support of the SEC in The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC and NYSE Arca, Inc. v. SEC, Nos. 18-1292, 18-1293 (D.C. Cir.), was described in Richard Henderson, 'Flash Boys' exchange IEX backs regulator in data fees fight, Financial Times, May 16, 2019 (subscription required).


• On April 24, 2019, Ruthanne Deutsch was quoted by Tony Mauro in Supreme Court Brief regarding the Supreme Court's order in Emulex Corp. v. Varjabedian, dismissing the case as improvidently granted ("DIG"), an outcome foreshadowed by the amicus brief filed by Deutsch Hunt PLLC in support of Respondents, on behalf of the North American Securities Administrators Association. Read Tony Mauro, Anatomy of a 'DIG' (paid subscription required).


• On April 8, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a final brief on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States as amicus curiae in support of Plaintiff-Appellant, in Ipsen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. v. Azar, No. 18-5299 (D.C. Cir.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On April 1, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a brief on behalf of the Small Business Majority Foundation as amicus curiae in support of Defendants-Appellants, in Texas v. United States, No. 19-10011 (5th Cir.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On March 28, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a brief on behalf of the North American Securities Administrators Association as amicus curiae in support of Respondents, in Emulex Corp. v. Varjabedian, No. 18-459 (S. Ct.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On March 20, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed a brief on behalf of property and tort law scholars as amici curiae in support of Appellants, in City of Oakland v. B.P. P.L.C., No. 18-16663 (9th Cir.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On March 15, 2019, Hyland Hunt published an article analyzing a recent SDNY decision regarding the dormant commerce clause, as part of Washington Legal Foundation's Legal Opinion Letter series. Read Court Finds NY Unconstitutionally Shifted Cost of "Opioid Stewardship Fund" to Out-of-State Commerce, Washington Legal Foundation, Mar. 15, 2019.


• On March 8, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC, together with lead counsel Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, filed a brief on behalf of America's Health Insurance Plans as amicus curiae in support of certiorari, in Moda Health Plan v. United States and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina v. United States, No. 18-1028 (S. Ct.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On February 28, 2019, the Candid Counsel interviewed Ruthanne Deutsch as part of its "Marquee Players" section, which features talented and innovative small-firm lawyers and inside counsel. Read Margaret M. Cassidy, Marquee Player: Attorney Ruthanne Deutsch, The Candid Counsel, Feb. 28, 2019.


• On February 27, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America as amicus curiae in support of Petitioner on the merits, in Parker Drilling Management Servs., Ltd. v. Newton, No. 18-389 (S. Ct.). The brief may be viewed here.


• On February 12, 2019, Deutsch Hunt's amicus brief on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce in support of Petitioner in Soundboard Ass'n v. FTC was quoted in C. Ryan Barber, Compliance Hot Spots: DOJ Defends FTC Staff Advisory Opinions, National Law Journal, Feb. 12, 2019 (subscription required).


• In January 2019, Ruthanne Deutsch was featured in a story about the Georgetown Supreme Court Institute, in which she was recognized as last year's most frequent "justice" for the Institute's Supreme Court moots. Read Barbara Grzincic, The School for SCOTUS, Georgetown Law Magazine, Fall-Winter 2018.


• On January 16, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed an amicus brief on behalf of Casey Family Programs and thirty other organizations with expertise in child welfare as amici curiae in support of the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act, in Brackeen v. Zinke, No. 18-11479 (5th Cir.).
  • The brief may be viewed here.
  • The brief was quoted in Andrew Westney, Tribes, Allies Say Constitution Backs Child Welfare Law,, Law360, Jan. 16, 2019 (registration required).


• On January 8, 2019, Ruthanne Deutsch was quoted in a story about the need for Supreme Court review in Soundboard Ass'n v. FTC. Read Anne Cullen, FTC Soundboard Ban Already Crushing Industry, Justices Told, Law360, Jan. 8, 2019 (registration required).


• On January 7, 2019, Deutsch Hunt PLLC filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America and the National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center as amici curiae in support of certiorari, in Soundboard Ass'n v. FTC, No. 18-722 (S. Ct.). The brief may be viewed here.