Roberts Holds Line on Judicial Second-Guessing of Covid Orders

The U.S. Supreme Court hasn’t shown much willingness during the Covid pandemic to second-guess emergency orders issued by public officials.

In approximately two dozen emergency requests received by the justices challenging federal, state, or local orders, Bloomberg Law found that the conservative-majority court has favored Democratic and Republican-led governments in all of them, save a procedural defeat that the Trump administration eventually won.

The justices have across the board upheld rules aimed at protecting public health during the pandemic, even if the rules limit freedoms. They’ve sustained restrictions on in-person religious services, turned away groups complaining about business closures, and ...