DOJ v. McNutt: Supreme Court case tracker
The Supreme Court will decide whether the federal ban on stills in homes is constitutional. This page follows the case filing by filing.
Status as of October 31, 2026
- Stage: merits briefing. Review was granted on October 19, 2026.[1]
- Next deadline: the government's opening brief is due December 3, 2026, 45 days after the grant, unless the Court extends it. The respondents' brief is due 30 days after that.[2]
- Oral argument: not yet scheduled. SCOTUSblog expects it in early 2027.[3]
- Decision: expected by the end of June or early July 2027.[3]
- Until then: the ban is still federal law, except that a court order bars enforcing it against the plaintiffs and members of the Hobby Distillers Association.[4]
The case in one minute
In 2023 the Hobby Distillers Association and four of its members sued over the 1868 law that bans distilleries in homes. A federal judge in Texas ruled for them in July 2024, and the Fifth Circuit agreed on April 10, 2026. Eleven days later the Sixth Circuit upheld the same ban in a separate case brought by an Ohio brewer, John Ream. With the appeals courts split, the government asked the Supreme Court to step in.[4,5,6] The full background is on where the law is heading.
The question the Court will answer
"Whether the prohibition on the production of distilled spirits in particular locations, including 'in any dwelling house' or 'in any shed, yard, or inclosure connected with any dwelling house,' 26 U.S.C. 5178(a)(1)(B), is necessary and proper for carrying into execution Congress's enumerated power to lay and collect taxes."[7]
Only the taxing power is at issue. The government did not defend the ban under the Commerce Clause on appeal.[4]
The parties
| Side | Who | Lawyer of record |
|---|---|---|
| Petitioners (asking the Court to reverse) | U.S. Department of Justice; Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau | D. John Sauer, Solicitor General |
| Respondents (defending the win) | Scott McNutt and the Hobby Distillers Association; also Rick Morris, Thomas O. Cowdrey III and John Prince III | Andrew M. Grossman, Baker & Hostetler |
Sources: the Supreme Court docket and the petition's list of parties.[1,4]
Docket timeline
| Date | Filing or event |
|---|---|
| Aug 14, 2026 | Government files its petition for review.[4] |
| Sep 17, 2026 | McNutt and the association file their brief in opposition.[8] |
| Sep 23, 2026 | Government files its reply; the case is sent to the justices' October 9 conference.[9,1] |
| Oct 13, 2026 | Sent to the October 16 conference.[1] |
| Oct 19, 2026 | Petition granted.[1] |
| Dec 3, 2026 | Due: government's brief on the merits (Rule 25.1, unless extended).[2] |
| +30 days | Due: respondents' brief on the merits (Rule 25.2).[2] |
| +30 days | Due: government's reply brief, and no later than 10 days before argument (Rule 25.3).[2] |
| Early 2027 | Expected: oral argument.[3] |
| By early July 2027 | Expected: decision.[3] |
Key documents
- Government's petition (August 14, 2026). Its appendix contains the Fifth Circuit opinion and the district court opinion.
- Respondents' brief in opposition (September 17, 2026).
- Government's reply (September 23, 2026).
- Fifth Circuit opinion, McNutt v. U.S. Department of Justice, No. 24-10760 (April 10, 2026).
- Sixth Circuit opinion, Ream v. U.S. Department of the Treasury, No. 25-3259 (April 21, 2026).
- The official docket, where new filings appear first.
The companion case: Ream v. Treasury
John Ream asked the Court to review his Sixth Circuit loss in July 2026 (No. 26-93). The Court took the government's case instead and has neither granted nor denied Ream's petition.[10,11] The Court often holds a related petition until it decides the main case.
What the decision could mean
- If the Court reverses: the ban stands nationwide as a valid use of the taxing power, and the injunction protecting the plaintiffs and association members would likely fall.
- If the Court affirms: the location ban could no longer be defended as a tax measure anywhere. The spirits tax and the permit system would remain, so Congress would still decide how to treat home distilling, for example through the Freedom to Home Distill Act.[12,13]
These are general possibilities, not predictions or legal advice.
Updates
- October 31, 2026: tracker started. No filings since the grant.
Sources
- Docket No. 26-204: Department of Justice v. McNutt Supreme Court of the United States, petition granted October 19, 2026
- Supreme Court Rule 25: Briefs on the Merits: Number of Copies and Time to File Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- Supreme Court agrees to consider federal ban on home distilleries SCOTUSblog, October 2026
- Petition for a writ of certiorari, DOJ v. McNutt (appendix includes the Fifth Circuit and district court opinions) Office of the Solicitor General, August 14, 2026
- McNutt v. U.S. Department of Justice, No. 24-10760 (opinion) U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, April 10, 2026
- Ream v. U.S. Department of the Treasury, No. 25-3259 (opinion) U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, April 21, 2026
- Question presented, No. 26-204 Supreme Court of the United States
- Brief of respondents Scott McNutt, et al. in opposition, No. 26-204 Supreme Court of the United States (docket), September 17, 2026
- Reply of petitioners United States Department of Justice, et al., No. 26-204 Supreme Court of the United States (docket), September 23, 2026
- Docket No. 26-93: Ream v. Department of the Treasury Supreme Court of the United States, petition filed July 20, 2026
- SCOTUS To Hear Our Case Hobby Distillers Association (a party to the case), October 20, 2026
- Fifth and Sixth Circuits Divided on Whether the Necessary and Proper Clause Authorizes Federal Ban on At-Home Spirit Distilling (LSB11459) Congressional Research Service, updated August 26, 2026
- H.R. 10157, Freedom to Home Distill Act (introduced text) U.S. Government Publishing Office, August 27, 2026