[20190627]LSB10317_ 最高法院关于“立法地位”的最新言论和国会原告的诉讼.pdf

CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i The Supreme Courts Latest Word on “Legislative Standing” and Lawsuits by Congressional Plaintiffs Updated June 27, 2019 On June 17, 2019, the Supreme Court decided Virginia House of Delegates v. Bethune-Hill. The Supreme Court originally agreed to hear Virginia House of Delegates to determine whether a state legislative map constituted an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. Instead of deciding that issue, the Court concluded that the Virginia House of Delegates lacked standing to appeal the case to the Supreme Court, issuing an opinion that could affect the ability of individual houses of Congress to participate in federal litigation going forward. The facts of Virginia House of Delegates were discussed in more detail in a previous CRS Legal Sidebar. In brief, the case arose out of a lawsuit challenging the 2011 state legislative map in Virginia as an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. In 2018, a federal district court determined that race was the dominant motivating factor in drawing eleven Virginia legislative districts, deeming them unconstitutional. Despite this adverse judgment,