The question
Whether the government's removal of Yonas Fikre from the No Fly List rendered moot his suit challenging his placement on the list.
FBI v. Fikre
What the Court decided
The Court affirmed the Ninth Circuit and held that Fikre's suit is not moot. A defendant that voluntarily stops a challenged practice moots a case only if it shows the practice cannot reasonably be expected to recur, and that burden falls on the defendant. The government's removal of Fikre from the No Fly List and its assurance that it will not relist him based on his past conduct did not establish that it would decline to relist him for the same or similar conduct in the future, so the case remains live.
How the justices split
UnanimousThe Court's opinion
Gorsuch, joined by Roberts, Thomas, Alito, Sotomayor, Kagan, Kavanaugh, Barrett, Jackson
Federal courts must dismiss moot cases, but a defendant does not automatically moot a case by suspending challenged conduct after being sued. A defendant's voluntary cessation moots a case only if the defendant shows the practice cannot reasonably be expected to recur, and that standard applies to governmental defendants as well as private ones. The government's removal of Fikre from the list and its assurance not to relist him for past conduct did not address whether it might relist him for the same or similar conduct in the future, and its speculation about Fikre's own future actions cannot substitute for assurance about its own conduct, so the government did not carry its burden.
Concurring
Alito, joined by Kavanaugh
Filed a concurring opinion joined by Kavanaugh.
How we know · 5 sourced claims
Fikre alleged the government placed him on the No Fly List unlawfully and violated his procedural due process rights by failing to provide meaningful notice or a way to secure redress.
Source: syllabus, Held
A defendant's voluntary cessation of a challenged practice moots a case only if the defendant shows the practice cannot reasonably be expected to recur.
Source: syllabus, Held
The burden to establish that the challenged conduct cannot reasonably be expected to resume rests on the defendant, and this standard holds for governmental defendants no less than private ones.
Source: syllabus, Held
The government failed to demonstrate that the case is moot despite delisting Fikre in 2016 and representing that it would not relist him for past conduct.
Source: syllabus, Held
Gorsuch delivered the opinion for a unanimous Court, and Alito filed a concurring opinion in which Kavanaugh joined.
Source: syllabus, lineup