Legal History Commons^™

Foreseeing Greatness? Measurable Performance Criteria And The Selection Of Supreme Court Justices, James J. Brudney

The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law Working Paper Series

This article contributes to an ongoing debate about the feasibility and desireability of measuring the "merit" of appellate judges--and their consequent Supreme Court potential--by using objective performance variables. Relying on the provocative and controversial "tournament criteria" proposed by Professors Stephen Choi and Mitu Gulati in two recent articles, Brudney assesses the "Supreme Court potential" of Warren Burger and Harry Blackmun based on their appellate court records. He finds that Burger's appellate performance appears more promising under the Choi and Gulati criteria, but then demonstrates how little guidance these quantitative assessments actually provide when reviewing the two men's careers on the …

The Market For Justice, The "Litigation Explosion," And The "Verdict Bubble": A Closer Look At Vanishing Trials, Frederic Nelson Smalkin, Frederic Nelson Chancellor Smalkin

ExpressO

This article takes a fresh look at the increasingly discussed topic of the scarcity of civil cases reaching trial in the Article III system. The number of cases tried declined by more than one-fourth in the decade from 1989-1999, and the decline continued at about the same rate to the end of the latest year for which statistics are available, 2002, while ADR (particularly arbitrations) skyrocketed.

The authors examine the history of competing English courts (particularly Common Pleas and King's Bench) for signs that, in fact, market competition can arise among dispute-resolving bodies. They also apply economic analysis to the …

Law And Judicial Duty, Philip A. Hamburger

Faculty Scholarship

Two hundred years ago, in Marbury v. Madison, Chief Justice Marshall delivered an opinion that has come to dominate modern discussions of constitutional law. Faced with a conflict between an act of Congress and the U.S. Constitution, he explained what today is known as "judicial review." Marshall described judicial review in terms of a particular type of "superior law" and a particular type of "judicial duty." Rather than speak generally about the hierarchy within law, he focused on "written constitutions."

He declared that the U.S. Constitution is "a superior, paramount law" and that if "the constitution is superior to any …

John Marshall Through The Eyes Of An Admirer: John Quincy Adams, Michael Daly Hawkins

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Lives Of John Marshall, Michael J. Gerhardt

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Clarence Thomas After Ten Years: Some Reflections, Stephen Wermiel

Articles in Law Reviews & Other Academic Journals

No abstract provided.

Brightening The Covenant Chain: Aboriginal Treaty Meanings In Law And History After Marshall, Mark D. Walters

Dalhousie Law Journal

The decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Marshall raises some difficult questions about the interpretation of Crown-Aboriginal treaties, especially treaties dating from the eighteenth century. The Court acknowledged that the treaty context is important to establishing the meaning of treaty texts, and Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal perspectives must be considered. As a result, judges must have regard to historical analyses of Crown-Aboriginal relations when interpreting these old treaties. In this article, the author explores some of the complex theoretical problems that such legal-historical analyses create, focusing in particular upon the possibility that lawyers and judges may reach …

Court Fixing, Tracey E. George

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This Article critically examines the existing social science evidence on the relative importance of various individual factors on judicial behavior and adds to that evidence by considering the influence of prior academic experience on judges. Researchers have not focused much attention on the importance of a judge's background as a full-time law professor and legal scholar, although more than thirteen percent of courts of appeals appointees were former law professors. Franklin Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan both viewed the federal judiciary (particularly the Supreme Court and the Courts of Appeals) as integral to their policy agendas, and both further believed that …

Why Lawyers Have Often Worn Strange Clothes, Claimed To Work For Free--And Been Hated, Hugh D. Spitzer

Articles

Why have lawyers and judges always adorned themselves in ancient regalia? Obviously, they must symbolically transform themselves from private individuals into "law speakers" for the community. They become tools of a longstanding legal system, and special clothes offer clues to others (and reminders to themselves) that they have special responsibilities, both to their clients and to the community at large. The "retro" clothes that lawyers and judges wear also remind everyone that law is old that it isn't meant to change rapidly, and that it offers stability and predictability in a changing world.

The Arkansas Supreme Court And The Civil War, L. Scott Stafford

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Remembering The Fourth Circuit Judges: A History From 1941 To 1998

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

A More Complete Look At Complexity, Jeffrey W. Stempel

Scholarly Works

The ability of courts to successfully resolve complex cases has been a matter of contentious debate, not only for the last quarter-century, but for most of the twentieth century. This debate has been part of the legal landscape at least since Judge Jerome Frank's polemic book from which this Symposium derives its title, and probably since Roscoe Pound's famous address to the American Bar Association. During the 1980s and 1990s in particular, the battlelines of the pro-and anti-court debate have been brightly drawn. Some commentators, most reliably successful plaintiffs' counsel and politically liberal academics, defend the judicial track record in …

The Civil Opinions Of Judge Phyllis A. Kravitch: A Tribute, Stephen Wermiel

Articles in Law Reviews & Other Academic Journals

No abstract provided.

The Court And The Changing Constitution: A Discussion, Carl Sividorski, James Gardner, Barry Latzer, Peter Galie

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Government Lawyers And The New Deal, Neal Devins

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

W Stories: Women In Leadership Positions In The Judiciary, Deanell Reece Tacha

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Nomination Of Justice Brennan: Eisenhower's Mistake: A Look At The Historical Record, Stephen Wermiel

Articles in Law Reviews & Other Academic Journals

No abstract provided.

Writing Supreme Court Biography: A Single Lens View Of A Nine-Sided Image, Stephen Wermiel

Articles in Law Reviews & Other Academic Journals

No abstract provided.

Confirming The Constitution: The Role Of The Senate Judiciary Committee, Stephen Wermiel

Articles in Law Reviews & Other Academic Journals

No abstract provided.

Quotas, Politics, And Judicial Statesmanship: The Civil Rights Act Of 1991 And Powell's Bakke, Mark H. Grunewald

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

Chief Justice Marshall, Justice Holmes, And The Discourse Of Constitutional Adjudication, G. Edward White

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Lord Mansfield And Negotiable Instruments, Jane D. Samson

Dalhousie Law Journal

In any system of judge-made law the longevity, education and character of a judge have enhanced significance. The idea of a judge personifies Justice, blinded and impartial, but the law he creates will inevitably be infused with his personality. Where an individual develops an entire system of law, his contribution to legal history can be overwhelming. Lord Mansfield remains a case in point.

Alternative Career Resolution: An Essay On The Removal Of Federal Judges, Stephen B. Burbank

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Review Of The High Court Of Delegates, William Hamilton Bryson

Law Faculty Publications

A book review on The High Court of Delegates by G. I. 0. Duncan.

In Re Gault: Understanding The Attorney's New Role, Glenn C. Equi, James D. Hutchinson, Barney B. Welsh

Villanova Law Review

No abstract provided.