The question
Whether the Court should reach the question of Deborah Laufer's Article III standing to sue hotels over website accessibility disclosures when she had voluntarily dismissed her suits and her case had become moot.
Acheson Hotels, LLC v. Laufer
What the Court decided
The Court vacated the First Circuit judgment and remanded, holding that Laufer's case is moot because she voluntarily dismissed her suits after a lower court sanctioned her lawyer. The Court declined to reach the Article III standing question that had produced a circuit split. The Court found it was not convinced that Laufer abandoned her case to evade review, so it resolved the case on mootness rather than reaching the merits of standing.
How the justices split
UnanimousThe Court's opinion
Barrett, joined by Roberts, Alito, Sotomayor, Kagan, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh
The Court held the case moot because Laufer voluntarily dismissed her suits after her lawyer was sanctioned. The Court stated it has authority to address jurisdictional issues of mootness and standing in any order it chooses and declined to reach the standing question despite the live circuit split. The Court was not convinced Laufer abandoned her case to evade review.
Concurring in the judgment
Thomas, writing alone
Thomas concurred in the judgment, agreeing with the disposition but not joining the Court's opinion.
Concurring in the judgment
Jackson, writing alone
Jackson concurred in the judgment, agreeing with the disposition but not joining the Court's opinion.
How we know · 5 sourced claims
The Court vacated the case as moot and remanded.
Source: syllabus, Held
Laufer voluntarily dismissed her pending suits after a lower court sanctioned her lawyer.
Source: syllabus, Held
The Court declined to resolve the circuit split on Article III standing that had been briefed and argued.
Source: syllabus, Held
Barrett delivered the opinion of the Court, joined by Roberts, Alito, Sotomayor, Kagan, Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh.
Source: syllabus, lineup
Thomas and Jackson each filed opinions concurring in the judgment.
Source: syllabus, lineup