The Supreme Court today affirmed a lower-court copyright ruling in BMG Rights Management v. Vetter after four justices recused themselves, leaving the Court without the quorum needed to hear the case. The petition, backed by major media and publishing companies, raised questions about copyright reversion limits. Under 28 U.S.C. §2109, the Court entered an order affirming the judgment below. Justices Sotomayor, Gorsuch, Barrett, and Jackson took no part in the decision.
The recusals are notable because all four absent justices have book deals, and the parties include prominent publishing companies. The source suggests these conflicts cannot be cured by divestment, unlike stock holdings. Justice Alito, who recently became a publisher, did not recuse. As a practical matter, media companies may struggle to get a full Court in future copyright cases, though a quorum-less Court can still affirm favorable lower-court rulings.
Separately, the Court granted certiorari in a racial preferences case from Montgomery County, Maryland, but rewrote the question presented. The Court's version asks whether a plaintiff challenging a facially neutral admissions policy must show that the targeted racial group suffered an aggregate disparate impact relative to its share of the applicant pool. The original petition framed the question around discriminatory intent, a framing the Court dropped. The source notes the new question may align with the current administration's policy on disparate impact.