On February 19, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court accepted McCutcheon v Federal Election Commission, 12-536. Briefs for the Republican National Committee and Shaun McCutcheon, and all the amici curiae, were filed in the U.S. Supreme Court in May. Briefs on the government’s side, and amici curiae on the side of the government, will be filed by mid-July. See here to read the briefs filed so far.

Shaun McCutcheon is an Alabama Republican donor who wants to make the maximum contribution to many Republican candidates for Congress, and to the national Republican Committee, and the other Republican Party committees. He does not challenge the maximum donation to any particular candidate or committee, but he does challenge the limit on all federal contributions combined. That limit is $46,200 in any two-year period to all candidates combined, and $70,000 in any two-year period to all committees combined.

The Libertarian Party and the Constitution Party are among the groups filing amici on the side of McCutcheon. The two parties are among the many groups that filed a single amicus curiae brief, the one in which the first-named amicus is Downsize DC Foundation. Some observers feel this case will eventually result in a substantial revision to current federal campaign finance law. Current federal law is now characterized by an illogical patchwork that disadvantages political parties more than any other groups that spend money to influence federal elections.