With Supreme Court hearing the case on the new health care law this week,you might want some tips on finding material about the Court and cases.
For background on cases my favorite is SCOTUSblog.com (it stands for Supreme Court of the United States). A law firm started it about 10 years ago and once it nabbed well-respected former court reporter Lyle Dennison, it developed quite the following.
The site says that it reports on cases at least three times: “prior to argument; after argument; and after the decision.” You can also find podcasts for some cases, done by lawyers arguing those cases. The site also posts some broader, themed stories. Here is a post on how to navigate the site.
The official site for the U. S. Supreme Court offers its calendar, decisions and a way to search for cases or topics. You can read, though they are rare, press releases and media advisories. If you need a factoid on the court or forgot what you learned in eighth grade civics, the about page or this tutorial for reporters about “applications” (emergency requests) can help.
Don’t expect to go online to see the arguments live. The court doesn’t do this, and in this case, specifically refused to allow live TV or Internet feed. But you can get the audio of any argument online at the end of the week in which the case comes up (and sometimes sooner).