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Articles 1 - 19 of 19
Full-Text Articles in Law
The New Laboratories Of Democracy, Gerald S. Dickinson
The New Laboratories Of Democracy, Gerald S. Dickinson
Articles
Nearly a century ago, Justice Louis D. Brandeis’s dissent in New State Ice Co. v. Liebman coined one of the most profound statements in American law: “It is one of the happy incidents of the federal system that a single courageous state may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country.” Justice Brandeis reminded us of our strong tradition of federalism, where the states, exercising their sovereign power, may choose to experiment with new legislation within their separate jurisdictions without the concern that such …
The Ghost Of John Hart Ely, Ryan D. Doerfler, Samuel Moyn
The Ghost Of John Hart Ely, Ryan D. Doerfler, Samuel Moyn
Vanderbilt Law Review
The ghost of John Hart Ely haunts the American liberal constitutional imagination. Despite the failure long ago of any progressive constitutional vision in an increasingly conservative Supreme Court, Ely’s conjectures about the superiority of judges relative to legislatures in the protection of minorities and the policing of the democratic process remain second nature. Indeed, they have been credible enough among liberals to underwrite an anxious or even hostile attitude toward judicial reform. In order to exorcise Ely’s ghost and lay it to rest, this Article challenges his twin conjectures. First, the Article argues that there is little historical and no …
Judicial Selection And The Search For Middle Ground, Charles G. Geyh
Judicial Selection And The Search For Middle Ground, Charles G. Geyh
Articles by Maurer Faculty
This Article seeks to transcend perennial election versus appointment debates-including debates over campaign finance and the impact of "dark money"-by taking a closer look at why judicial selection is a contentious mess and discussing how it might be fixed. First, I present the case for elective and appointive systems. Second, I show that the arguments for each system are exaggerated or flawed.Third, I explore why it has been hard for proponents of each system to perceive and acknowledge those exaggerations and flaws, and propose ways to narrow the divide. Although the divide can and should be narrowed, I conclude that …
Justice For Sale: Contemplations On The "Impartial" Judge In A Citizens United World, Aviva Abramovsky
Justice For Sale: Contemplations On The "Impartial" Judge In A Citizens United World, Aviva Abramovsky
Aviva Abramovsky
Although it has long been in vogue to discredit the judiciary, it remains the most trusted of the three branches of government. However, empirical evidence supports the idea that judicial campaign donations affect judicial decision making. The reality of political campaigns under Citizens United has the potential to further undermine the public perception of judges and to enhance the potential for corruption of the judiciary.
Judging Law In Election Cases, Michael S. Kang, Joanna Shepherd
Judging Law In Election Cases, Michael S. Kang, Joanna Shepherd
Faculty Articles
In Part I, we introduce our earlier work on election cases and judicial partisanship before setting forth our new approach to studying the influence of law on judicial decisionmaking. We describe the special nature of the election cases in our database that allow more persuasive inferences of judicial partisanship than typically derived in empirical work on judicial behavior. We then explain our new approach for measuring case strength based on counterpartisan decisionmaking by judges. In Part II, we apply our approach to case strength to our dataset and present our results. In a nutshell, partisanship appears to matter as expected …
Judges As Politicians: The Enduring Tension Of Judicial Elections In The Twenty-First Century, Richard Lorren Jolly
Judges As Politicians: The Enduring Tension Of Judicial Elections In The Twenty-First Century, Richard Lorren Jolly
Notre Dame Law Review Reflection
Elections transform the basis of judicial legitimacy. Whereas a permanently appointed judiciary finds support in its supposed neutrality, the democratic judiciary demands responsiveness. Yet while this is obvious to scholars, the electorate, and most judges—and is in fact confirmed by much statistical data—the Supreme Court and others continue to insist that judicial campaigns can be sculpted to ensure robust democratic debate without compromising the bench’s impartiality. This Essay rejects the notion that the court can be both democratic and disinterested. It reviews the volatile history of judicial elections as well as the modern web of distinctions between protected and proscribable …
The Ideological Consequences Of Selection: A Nationwide Study Of The Methods Of Selecting Judges, Brian T. Fitzpatrick
The Ideological Consequences Of Selection: A Nationwide Study Of The Methods Of Selecting Judges, Brian T. Fitzpatrick
Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications
One topic that has gone largely unexplored in the long debate over how best to select judges is whether there are any ideological consequences to employing one selection method versus another. The goal of this study is to assess whether certain methods of selection have resulted in judiciaries that skew to the left or right compared with the public at large in those states. In particular, I examine the ideological preferences of state appellate judges in all 50 states over a 20-year period (1990-2010) as measured by their relative affiliation with the Republican or Democratic Party through campaign contributions, voter …
The Long Shadow Of Bush V. Gore: Judicial Partisanship In Election Cases, Michael S. Kang, Joanna M. Shepherd
The Long Shadow Of Bush V. Gore: Judicial Partisanship In Election Cases, Michael S. Kang, Joanna M. Shepherd
Faculty Articles
Bush v. Gore decided a presidential election and is the most dramatic election case in our lifetime, but cases like it are decided every year at the state level. Ordinary state courts regularly decide questions of election rules and administration that effectively determine electoral outcomes hanging immediately in the balance. Election cases like Bush v. Gore embody a fundamental worry with judicial intervention into the political process: outcome-driven, partisan judicial decisionmaking. The Article investigates whether judges decide cases, particularly politically sensitive ones, based on their partisan loyalties more than the legal merits of the cases. It presents a novel method …
Procedural Fairness In Election Contests, Joshua A. Douglas
Procedural Fairness In Election Contests, Joshua A. Douglas
Law Faculty Scholarly Articles
This Article uncovers the different mechanisms states use to resolve election contests. One universal rule regarding post-election disputes is that "[t]here is no common law basis for election challenges." As the Iowa Supreme Court explained, "[t]he right to contest an election is only conferred by statute, and contestants must strictly comply with the provisions of the statute in order to confer jurisdiction. Thus, contestants are limited to the scheme provided by the legislature." An inquiry into election contests therefore entails a survey of state election statutes and constitutions. Although it is possible that parties may file in federal court and …
The Filibuster Of Judicial Nominations: Constitutional Crisis Or Politics As Usual?, Arthur L. Rizer Iii
The Filibuster Of Judicial Nominations: Constitutional Crisis Or Politics As Usual?, Arthur L. Rizer Iii
Pepperdine Law Review
No abstract provided.
Justice For Sale: Contemplations On The "Impartial" Judge In A Citizens United World, Aviva Abramovsky
Justice For Sale: Contemplations On The "Impartial" Judge In A Citizens United World, Aviva Abramovsky
Journal Articles
Although it has long been in vogue to discredit the judiciary, it remains the most trusted of the three branches of government. However, empirical evidence supports the idea that judicial campaign donations affect judicial decision making. The reality of political campaigns under Citizens United has the potential to further undermine the public perception of judges and to enhance the potential for corruption of the judiciary.
Politics In The Non-Political Branch, Justin L. Swanson
Politics In The Non-Political Branch, Justin L. Swanson
College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Professional Projects
Across the country there exists a patchwork of legal systems by which judges are appointed retained. In some states, like Illinois, it is a fully political process where judges actively campaign for election to the bench. But a majority of states, including Nebraska, have adopted the Merit Selection System, which attempts to remove politics from these processes. Nevertheless, politics can enter into the retention votes. And when they do, it can be extremely difficult for judges to overcome.
Defending The Majoritarian Court, Amanda Frost
Defending The Majoritarian Court, Amanda Frost
Articles in Law Reviews & Other Academic Journals
No abstract provided.
Judicial Elections In The Aftermath Of White, Caperton, And Citizens United, Charles G. Geyh
Judicial Elections In The Aftermath Of White, Caperton, And Citizens United, Charles G. Geyh
Articles by Maurer Faculty
No abstract provided.
Reconsidering Virginia Judicial Selection, Carl W. Tobias
Reconsidering Virginia Judicial Selection, Carl W. Tobias
University of Richmond Law Review
No abstract provided.
Had Enough In Ohio - Time To Reform Ohio's Judicial Selection Process, Bradley Link
Had Enough In Ohio - Time To Reform Ohio's Judicial Selection Process, Bradley Link
Cleveland State Law Review
This note will examine the problems that the election of state judges creates, as well as the inadequacies of the current model of merit selection. I propose that Ohio should adopt an appointive method of selecting judges, which will utilize a judicial eligibility commission as outlined by the American Bar Association similar to the nominating commissions commonly found in merit selection plans but which will do away with the commonly found retention election. Ohio needs to change the manner in which state judges are selected in order to bring confidence in the state judiciary, and to ensure that the most …
Judicial Elections, Campaign Financing, And Free Speech, Ronald D. Rotunda
Judicial Elections, Campaign Financing, And Free Speech, Ronald D. Rotunda
Law Faculty Articles and Research
No abstract provided.
Mapping The Morass: Application Of Section 2 Of The Voting Rights Act To Judicial Elections, Mary Thrower Wickham
Mapping The Morass: Application Of Section 2 Of The Voting Rights Act To Judicial Elections, Mary Thrower Wickham
William & Mary Law Review
No abstract provided.
Judicial Selection And Tenure In Indiana: A Critical Analysis And Suggested Reform
Judicial Selection And Tenure In Indiana: A Critical Analysis And Suggested Reform
Indiana Law Journal
Indiana's method of selecting its judiciary by the partisan election process has for years been considered wholly inadequate by those who have given it serious thought. Yet that system persists, notwithstanding many efforts at legislative reform. The Editors of the Indiana Law Journal feel it is the responsibility of all citizens, attorneys and judges to continually seek adoption of the most sound method of selecting and retaining in public office those entrusted with the responsibility of administering justice. The following nwte is presented as one writer's evaluation of the present system and its alternatives, in the hope that it will …