New Term - Monday, October 4 -- Cases, Questions, few Answers about the U.S. Supreme Court (PBS NewsHour)

from Marcia Coyle -- correspondent for the Lehrer NewsHour on PBS -- weekdays : www.pbs.org/newshour

Do a Kansas preacher and his anti-gay followers have a constitutional right to picket and protest during the burial of a Marine who was killed in Iraq? How far can the government go in checking the background of a potential employee before violating the individual's right to privacy? And can a state restrict the sale of violent video games to minors without running afoul of the First Amendment?

The Supreme Court will face those difficult questions and others when the new term begins, as is its tradition, on the first Monday in October. Marcia Coyle, Chief Washington Correspondent for the National Law Journal and regular NewsHour analyst, recently briefed The Rundown on what she'll be watching as the term begins:
What are the key cases to watch for in the 2010-2011 Supreme Court term?

MARCIA COYLE: There are no apparent blockbusters on the docket just yet, no case that rises to the level of last term's decisions permitting corporate money to flow freely in federal elections and applying the Second Amendment right to own a gun to the states. But it's the rare term that doesn't provide some major ruling and the docket already is chock full of important and interesting cases.
How will the addition of the newest justice, Elena Kagan, impact the makeup of the court? And how will we feel the absence of Justice John Paul Stevens?
MARCIA COYLE: This term will be historic. At exactly 10 a.m. on the first Monday when the red velvet curtains behind the justices' bench part, three women for the first time in history, will step forward to take their seats. It shouldn't be a big deal in 2010 when women have taken their places in boardrooms, Congress and other critical positions. But it is a big deal in an institution that has lacked real diversity for such a long time. Something for all of us to watch is whether having three women on the Supreme Court makes a difference in any significant way.  The term also will have its first non-judge justice in more than three decades. How will this non-judge justice -- former Harvard Law dean and Solicitor General Elena Kagan -- judge? How will she approach the cases before her?
And who will become the leading voice of the more liberal members of the court now that Justice John Paul Stevens, a major force by virtue of both his intellect and experience, has retired? Will it be Justice Stephen Breyer or perhaps Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg?
Do we know what the final caseload looks like yet?
MARCIA COYLE: No. What we do know so far is that the justices have agreed to hear arguments in 38 cases. That is not the final number. The justices look over petitions for review every week of the term and add cases to the argument docket until it is filled, usually by mid-January.