The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments on Tuesday in two cases about the Biden administration’s attempt to forgive hundreds of billions of dollars in federal student debt.
The first case, Biden v. Nebraska, was brought by six Republican-controlled states that challenged the Education Department’s student debt relief plan. The second, Department of Education v. Brown, was brought by two borrowers who challenged it.
Both cases will grapple with two questions. One is whether the challengers have legal standing to bring their lawsuits. The other is whether the program exceeds the legal authority that Congress granted to the Education Department and whether it followed legally required procedures in devising the plan.
Each case will receive at least one hour of arguments but is likely to run well over that. Lawyers for each side will first present their point of view over 30 minutes and then answer the justices’ questions in an unstructured format. That is typically followed by one-by-one questions from the justices in order of seniority. Both sides — and many “friends of the court” supporting each position — have already filed briefs, so the questioning may focus only on the thorniest points.
After lower courts sided with the challengers and blocked the program, the Biden administration asked that the Supreme Court take another look. The Justice Department’s solicitor general, Elizabeth Prelogar, will argue first as the so-called appellant or petitioner. She will also get a brief rebuttal period at the end.
In the first argument, James A. Campbell, the solicitor general of Nebraska, will argue on behalf of the states as the so-called appellee or respondent. The lawyer John M. Connolly is arguing on behalf of the student loan borrowers challenging the program in the second case.
Justice Clarence Thomas, who has served on the court the longest, rarely spoke from the bench for most of his tenure. But once the court held its arguments remotely after the pandemic took hold, he became more of a presence, asking the first question as justices took turns in order of seniority. Justice Thomas has continued that practice since the court began reconvening in person, and may be the first again on Tuesday.
