Legal experts now expect Supreme Court to strike down individual mandate

The Supreme Court will soon announce its ruling on the constitutionality of President Barack Obama's health care law passed in 2010, and for many legal observers who have worked in the court and argued cases before the justices, the federal government's defense of the measure in March did not inspire confidence.

A new insider survey of 58 legal experts conducted after the oral arguments concluded found that most predict that the court will strike down the so-called individual mandate, a central provision within the law requiring that every American purchase a government-approved form of health insurance. The same expert survey was conducted before the hearings began, which found the opposite: Most thought the law would be upheld.
After observing the justices during the health care hearings, seven out of ten of the experts said they felt the line of questioning "indicated that they were more skeptical about the law's constitutionality" than they expected. No one who participated in the survey said they thought the justices appeared "less skeptical" than they anticipated.

At the latest, the justices will announce their decisions on the health care law on June 28, although it could come earlier.