Opinion
Judges see past Cooper’s rhetoric in appointments battle
A bipartisan three-judge panel upheld five of seven state board appointment structures the governor targeted in a lawsuit.
News
Judges uphold five of seven targeted boards in Cooper v. Berger appointments fight
A unanimous three-judge panel has upheld five of seven newly constituted state boards Gov. Roy Cooper had targeted in a lawsuit. The Democratic governor had argued that all seven boards violated the state constitution because Republican lawmakers took away Cooper’s appointment powers.
News
Judges reject injunction in Cooper v Berger appointments fight
A three-judge panel has denied Gov. Roy Cooper’s request for an injunction blocking recent actions from the state Environmental Management Commission. The panel made that unanimous decision Friday after a nearly three-hour hearing in a lawsuit pitting Cooper against Republican legislative leaders. The decision also dissolved a temporary restraining order against the EMC that had remained in effect for a month.
News
Legislative leaders ask court to dismiss Cooper’s appointments lawsuit
Top state legislative leaders are asking a Superior Court panel to dismiss Gov. Roy Cooper’s lawsuit challenging changes to appointments for selected state boards and commissions. The panel granted Cooper an injunction on Nov. 1 blocking changes for three boards.
News
Three-judge panel blocks part of new law in appointments fight between Cooper, lawmakers
A three-judge Superior Court panel has blocked part of a new state law that shifts some government board appointment powers from Gov. Roy Cooper to the Republican-controlled General Assembly or other executive officers. The judges granted a preliminary injunction against changes to appointments to the state Economic Investment Committee, Commission for Public Health, and Board of Transportation. Judges refused to block changes to the Environmental Management Commission and Coastal Resources Commission.
Opinion
Much has changed since state’s top court decided McCrory v. Berger
Only the dissenting justice remains from a 2016 case dealing with the General Assembly's appointment powers.
Opinion
Budget delay strengthens case for limits
House Speaker Tim Moore told reporters last week that the North Carolina General Assembly is unlikely to craft and approve a state budget deal before Labor Day. That’s more than two months into the 2023-24 fiscal year that began July 1. The good news is that, in stark contrast to the rules of the federal...
Opinion
Separation of powers protects freedom
Has there even been a point of time in which so many public controversies rest on a single, abstract principle of constitutional government? I can’t think of one. The principle in question is the separation of powers. Here are only some of its recent political manifestations: • The U.S. Supreme Court has just blocked President...
Opinion
Republican justices focus on fundamental principles, not politics
The chief justice of North Carolina's Supreme court spells out his approach to the court's role in policy disputes.
Opinion
NC Supreme Court has second chance to uphold separation of powers in Leandro
Five months after its latest major ruling in North Carolina’s Leandro case, the N.C. Supreme Court is on track to consider the long-running education funding dispute again. Perhaps this time the court will display a stronger regard for the constitutional separation of powers.
News
Cooper drops two-year-old lawsuit against state Rules Review Commission
Gov. Roy Cooper is dropping his lawsuit challenging legislative control of North Carolina’s Rules Review Commission. Cooper’s lawyers filed a notice of voluntary dismissal on Friday. A three-judge panel had been scheduled to hold a hearing in the case on Nov. 9.
Opinion
Shiver me timbers: early lessons from the sea change in SCOTUS jurisprudence
The Dobbs ruling is a victory for what students of government call the separation of powers.
