74 Am. U. L. Rev. F. 203 (2025).

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Abstract

The voluntary cessation doctrine allows courts to hear cases that would otherwise be moot. Even if defendants cease their challenged behavior, courts will still decide cases if the defendants can resume their alleged misconduct.

For years, circuit courts have incorrectly applied a lower standard to government defendants who assert that they will not resume their challenged conduct. However, the Supreme Court requires that government defendants face the same heavy burden as private actors.

This standard likewise applies to public prison defendants. Lower courts must ensure these defendants meet the same heavy burden, meaning public prisons that make easily reversible policy changes or single exceptions for incarcerated plaintiffs during litigation do not satisfy the Supreme Court’s burden for proving mootness.

* Junior Staffer, American University Law Review, Volume 74; J.D. Candidate, May 2026, American University Washington College of Law; B.A., Public Policy and Spanish, May 2020, University of Virginia. Thank you to my faculty advisor, Professor Lise Beske, and the entire American University Law Review staff, especially my Note and Comment Editor, Erin McCoy.