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Will the Supreme Court accept an Obamacare appeal without waiting for a Court of Appeals decision?

That's what Virginia attorney general Kenneth Cuccinelli is attempting to make happen in Virginia v. Sebelius.

Rule 11. Certiorari to a United States Court of Appeals Before Judgment
A petition for a writ of certiorari to review a case pending in a United States court of appeals, before judgment is entered in that court, will be granted only upon a showing that the case is of such imperative public importance as to justify deviation from normal appellate practice and to require im mediate determination in this Court. See 28 U.S.C. §2101(e).

It is extremely rare for the Court to grant certiorari before judgment of a court of appeals.... A quick Westlaw search (in which I certainly may have missed something) indicates that the last time the Court did so ? setting aside cases in which the Court took a case and consolidated it with another one coming from the court of appeals, or simply granted cert to vacate and remand in light of a recent decision ? was 23 years ago in United States v. Mistretta. There, the district court had declared the newly minted U.S. Sentencing Guidelines unconstitutional as a violation of separation of powers. And the need for quick judicial resolution was extremely pressing ? it affected the sentencing of every single federal defendant in the country.

What is the argument for urgency here? So much effort and money are being wasted if it is in fact the case that the reform is void. 

Full post as published by Althouse on February 03, 2011 (boomark / email).