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Louisiana | Congress

Robinson v. Landry (was Ardoin)

Last Updated Feb 9, 2024
Case No. 3:22-cv-00211 (M.D. La.); Nos. 22-30333, 23-30642 (5th Cir.); Nos. 21A814, 21-1596, 23A281, 23A282 (S. Ct.)
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Case Information

Federal court challenge to the congressional plan, alleging impermissible dilution of the voting strength of Black voters in violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.

On June 6, 2022, the Court granted a preliminary injunction against the congressional map, which the state appealed.   On June 28, 2022, the state secured a grant of cert. before judgment and a stay from the Supreme Court pending the decision in Milligan v. Merrill.  After the Milligan decision, the Supreme Court dismissed the petition for cert. before judgment as improvidently granted.  The case returned to the Fifth Circuit, which on Nov. 10, 2023, affirmed the trial court’s factual findings and legal conclusions, but found no urgent need for a preliminary injunction any longer.  The court of appeals gave the legislature until Jan. 15, 2024, to either enact a new plan or rest on the old plan and proceed to trial and a final judgment on the merits.

Meanwhile, the trial court had been proceeding toward hearings on a remedial plan; on Sept. 28, 2023, a different Fifth Circuit panel granted a petition for mandamus, vacating the trial court’s planned remedial hearing as too rushed, but allowing the trial court to proceed at a slower pace.  Pursuant to the Fifth Circuit’s Nov. 10 order above, the trial court gave the legislature until Jan. 30, 2024, to either enact a new plan or rest on the old plan and proceed to trial and a final judgment on the merits.

On Jan. 22, 2024, the governor signed a new legislative remedial map, now challenged in Callais v. Landry.  On enactment of this new map, the state has moved to dismiss this case.

History

Case filings, starting with most recent court
    Name Last Modified
Document icon State's petition for mandamus (incl. appx.) Sep 15, 2023
Document icon Court response Sep 20, 2023
Document icon Robinson plaintiffs' response Sep 20, 2023
Document icon Galmon plaintiffs' response Sep 20, 2023
Document icon State's reply Sep 21, 2023
Highlighted document Document icon Opinion granting mandamus Sep 28, 2023
    Name Last Modified
Document icon State's notice of remedial plan Jan 24, 2024
Document icon Robinson plaintiffs' resp. Feb 6, 2024
Document icon Galmon plaintiffs' resp. Feb 6, 2024
Document icon State's motion to dismiss Feb 9, 2024

Map | Challenged congressional plan

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