On March 14, 2013, Jeff Wice will moderate a panel on the possible effects of the decision in Shelby County v. Holder. The panel is presented jointly by the New York Lawyer Chapter of the American Constitution Society and LatinoJustice PRLDEF. Mr. Wice will moderate a panel consisting of Leah Aden ,Assistant Counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Juan Cartagena, President of LatinoJustice PRLDEF, and Myrna Pérez, Senior Counsel for the Brennan Center for Justice.

At issue in Shelby County v. Holder – which has been argued before the Supreme Court, but not yet decided - was the constitutionality of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. The panel will discuss how the case made its way to the Supreme Court, as well as the potential ramifications of the Supreme Court striking down the statute.

For more information on the panel, please visit the American Constitution Society’s website.

Joe Sandler will speak today on campaign finance reform at a roundtable symposium at The University of Massachusetts School of Law. The subject of the symposium is “Politics and the Law” and will feature a keynote address from US Congressman Bill Keating (D-MA). In addition to Mr. Sandler’s discussion of campaign finance reform, other speakers will discuss additional topics including political corruption and Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.

The symposium is open to the public on a first-come, first-serve basis

For more information on the symposium, click here: http://www.umassd.edu/law/news/politicsandthelaw/

Jeffrey M. Wice, of counsel to SRYL, has coauthored an article in the newest  Election Law Journal (Volume 2, Number 4). “Court Deference to State Legislatures in Redistricting  After Perry v. Perez” analyzes the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Perry v. Perez in the context of competing precedents, surveys post-Perry redistricting cases, and considers Perry’s implications for the future. The article provides a framework for issues to be considered when state legislatures (and other redistricting authorities)  fail to redistrict  or when courts are faced with redrawing redistricting plans found to violate federal, state or local law.