Trump predicted to reverse Biden DOJ stances on pending SCOTUS cases

President Joe Biden has suffered a number of significant defeats at the U.S. Supreme Court during his tenure in office, and his imminent departure from the White House is poised to alter the status of many positions his administration has taken in cases yet to be heard by the high court.

As the Washington Examiner explains, the Department of Justice under President-elect Donald Trump is likely to reverse course on a number of Biden-driven stances on cases involving hot-button issues including gun control, abortion access, vaping, transgender concerns, and immigration.

Course correction imminent?

Though the transition between presidencies of divergent parties often brings the opportunity for significant shifts in approach, the pivotal nature of many cases currently before the high court brings potentially noteworthy implications this time around.

No less than current Justice Elena Kagan, during her time as solicitor general during Barack Obama's presidency, suggested that the decision of a new administration to abruptly reverse course on government positions at the high court is “a really big deal that people should hesitate a long time over,” those words of caution have not always been heeded.

Indeed, upon taking office in 2021, the Biden administration wasted little time in reversing a number of the stances taken during the Trump years.

The first Trump term in office was similarly marked by a number of notable reversals from positions staked out by the Obama DOJ.

With D. John Sauer, an attorney who recently handled Donald Trump's criminal defense strategies in multiple cases, poised to assume the role of solicitor general in a matter of weeks, it seems to many a foregone conclusion the new administration will adopt a vastly different tack from that taken by the Biden DOJ.

Positions poised for change

In the estimation of Thomas Wolf of the Brennan Center for Justice, the incoming Trump DOJ may part company from the Biden administration's arguments in upwards of six or so cases, a scenario which could have a lasting impact on the state of the law.

The matter of United States v. Skrmetti is one such case, and in it, the justices will weigh whether a state ban on gender-affirming medical care for minors runs afoul of the Constitution's equal protection clause, a stance taken by the Biden DOJ.

In Garland v. VanDerStock, the high court is poised to review a Biden ATF rule governing ghost guns, which are firearms kits known for their traceability problems, and the Trump administration may find itself under pressure to file a brief in opposition to the current administration's stance.

The case of Diamond Energy Alternative v. EPA may emerge as yet another legal battle ground on which the incoming Trump administration may reverse course from the Biden DOJ's prior contention that plaintiff fuel producers lack standing to challenge an EPA waiver granted to California that allowed the state to set far stricter emissions rules than those promulgated by the federal government.

The aforementioned controversies, along with cases touching on the legality of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy, access to abortion drug mifepristone, and the regulation of flavored e-cigarette products all present situations in which Trump's DOJ may seek a different result than those sought by Bide administration lawyers.

Potentially pivotal period ahead

In addition to the Trump DOJ's likely approach to key issues pending before the high court, the president-elect could also be poised to exercise an outsized influence on the panel, the effects of which could endure for decades, as Newsmax reports.

Having already achieved the confirmation of three Supreme Court nominations during his first term in office, court watchers are now suggesting that he may have the opportunity to name at least another two justices during the next four years.

If, as some suspect, Justice Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito step down from the bench during Trump's second term, the incoming president would bring his total Supreme Court placement tally to five, the highest number seen in over six decades and one likely to delight the Republican base and solidify the conservative trajectory of SCOTUS well into the future.