Gorsuch effect will be on full display at start of Supreme Court's new term

Justice Neil Gorsuch's influence on the Supreme Court's deliberations will be evident immediately when oral arguments start Monday.

October brings the first full term on the high court for Gorsuch, and the first two days of oral arguments include a pair of immigration cases scheduled for reargument. The two cases, Sessions v. Dimaya and Jennings v. Rodriguez, were argued before Gorsuch joined the high court, which suggests the justices could be deadlocked and in need of the newest justice's input.

The two immigration cases provide Gorsuch an opportunity to shape the boundaries of future immigration policy crafted by the president who appointed him, Donald Trump. Sessions v. Dimaya raises the question of whether the Immigration and Nationality Act's "crime of violence" provision is unconstitutionally vague, and Jennings v. Rodriguez involves whether illegal immigrants, including those with criminal records, are entitled to bond hearings.

Gorsuch is poised to return the high court to its status quo in key upcoming controversies, such as the case, Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, granted by the high court on Thursday involving a new challenge to public-sector union fees in Illinois.

In 2016, the Supreme Court looked likely to overturn a precedent that said public-sector employees who do not belong to a union can be forced to pay a fee that covers the union's costs in negotiating the contract that applies to all employees. But the high court split 4-4 in deciding the case soon after Justice Antonin Scalia's death. Gorsuch's presence may indicate that the justices want another chance to overturn the existing precedent.