AMICUS Act

Bill: 117-s-3385
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Whitehouse, Sheldon [D-RI]
Introduced: 2021-12-14
Policy area: Law
Subjects: Civil actions and liability

Government ethics and transparency, public corruption

Judges

Judicial procedure and administration

Supreme Court
Latest action: action_date: 2021-12-14
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-12-14
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><b>Assessing Monetary Influence in the Courts of the United States Act or the AMICUS Act</b></p> <p>This bill requires certain disclosures in relation to amicus briefs (i.e., briefs that are filed by those who are not a party to a case but have an interest in the case).</p> <p>Specifically, each amicus brief that is filed in a U.S. court of appeals or the Supreme Court must list the name of any person who contributed (1) to the preparation or submission of the brief, (2) at least 3% of the gross annual revenue of the entity filing the brief for the previous year, or (3) more than $100,000 in the previous year to the filer. Such requirements do not apply to routine commercial transactions that are unrelated to amicus brief filings.</p> <p>The bill also prohibits those who file amicus briefs from giving gifts or providing travel to a judge of a U.S. court of appeals or a justice of the Supreme Court, except for reimbursements for travel expenses in relation to law school appearances.</p> <p>Violators are subject to civil penalties. </p>

tv_txt: II 117th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 3385 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES December 14, 2021 Mr. Whitehouse (for himself, Mr. Sanders , Mr. Blumenthal , Ms. Hirono , Ms. Warren , and Mr. Luján ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To amend title 28, United States Code, to require certain disclosures related to amicus activities.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Assessing Monetary Influence in the Courts of the United States Act or the AMICUS Act . 2. Disclosures related to amicus activities (a) In general Chapter 111 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 1660. Disclosures related to amicus activities (a) Definition In this section, the term covered amicus means any person, including any affiliate of the person, that files an amicus brief in a calendar year in the Supreme Court of the United States or a courts of appeals of the United States. (b) Disclosure (1) In general Any covered amicus that files an amicus brief in the Supreme Court of the United States or a court of appeals of the United States shall list in the amicus brief the name of any person who— (A) contributed to the preparation or submission of the amicus brief; (B) contributed not less than 3 percent of the gross annual revenue of the covered amicus for the previous calendar year if the covered amicus is not an individual; or (C) contributed more than $100,000 to the covered amicus in the previous calendar year. (2) Exceptions The requirements of this subsection shall not apply to amounts received by a covered amicus described in paragraph (1) in commercial transactions in the ordinary course of any trade or business conducted by the covered amicus or in the form of investments (other than investments by the principal shareholder in a limited liability corporation) in an organization if the amounts are unrelated to the amicus filing activities of the covered amicus. (c) Audit The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct an annual audit to ensure compliance with this section. (d) Prohibition on provision of gifts or travel by covered amici to judges and justices (1) In general Except as provided in paragraph (2), no covered amicus may make a gift or provide travel to a judge of a court of appeals of the United States, the Chief Justice of the United States, or an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. (2) Reimbursement for travel for appearances at accredited law schools Paragraph (1) shall not apply to reimbursement for travel for an appearance at an accredited law school. (e) Civil fines Whoever knowingly fails to comply with any provision of this section shall, upon proof of such knowing violation by a preponderance of the evidence, be subject to a civil fine of not more than $200,000, depending on the extent and gravity of the violation. (f) Rules of construction (1) Constitutional rights Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit or interfere with— (A) the right to petition the Government for the redress of grievances; (B) the right to express a personal opinion; or (C) the right of association, protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. (2) Prohibition of activities Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit, or to authorize any court to prohibit, amicus activities by any person or entity, regardless of whether such person or entity is in compliance with the requirements of this section. (g) Severability If any provision of this section, or the application thereof, is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this section and the application of such provision to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby. . (b) Technical and conforming amendment The table of sections for chapter 111 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 1660. Disclosures related to amicus activities. .