While it may not compare to yesterday's en banc argument at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, (some coverage here, via Howard), oral arguments take place in all sorts of settings on all sorts of topics. For example, I'll be in the courtroom today (in my capacity as Clerk of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia) for oral argument in thirteen cases. (Last week I was in the courtroom until nearly 9:00 pm after a day of oral argument in eleven cases.)

The public is welcome. Argument starts at 10:00 am, and, as usual, the day's proceedings will be webcast live. There are some very interesting issues -- medical monitoring in a case against duPont alleging contamination of city drinking water in Parkersburg, WV (case #1 on the docket); ownership of coalbed methane in a dispute with wide-ranging impact between owners of the coal estate and owners of oil and gas leases (case #2 on the docket); and a certified question from the federal district court in the Northern District of West Virginia: "Under the West Virginia Unfair Trade Practices Act, specifically W.Va. Code §33-11-4(9), is an insurer liable to a third-party for the conduct of an attorney hired by the insurer, when that attorney is hired by the insurer to represent the insurer's insured, and when the attorney's conduct took place during and after the initiation of a civil action against the insurer's insured for legal malpractice?" (case #3 on the docket).

What's more, in between arguments the Court will meet to decide various motions in three pending cases that challenge aspects of a current plan to fund $200 million in economic development projects by issuing bonds backed by revenue from video lottery. Likely to be a busy day.