Plaut v. Spendthrift Farm, Inc

In Plaut v. Spendthrift Farm, Inc., 514 U.S. 211, 218, 115 S. Ct. 1447, 131 L. Ed. 2d 328 (1995), the Court struck down the retroactive amendment to a federal law because it amended the statute of limitations and attempted to reopen a case that had been dismissed on grounds of untimeliness and then never appealed. Id. at 218-19. In contrast, the Court held that "when a new law makes clear that it is retroactive, an appellate court must apply that law in reviewing judgments still on appeal that were rendered before the law was enacted, and must alter the outcome accordingly." Id., 514 U.S. at 226.