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Missouri Nonpartisan Court Plan: The Least Political Method Of Selecting High Quality Judges, The, Laura Denvir Stith, Jeremy Root
Missouri Nonpartisan Court Plan: The Least Political Method Of Selecting High Quality Judges, The, Laura Denvir Stith, Jeremy Root
Missouri Law Review
According to Justice Steven Breyer, "the reputation and the reality of the fairness and effectiveness of the American judicial system are in the hands of the states."1 In the laboratory of American democracy, each sovereign state has the freedom to design the method by which members of its judiciary are chosen. The unique history, culture and experiences of each state have led to the adoption of a variety of systems to select judges. These methods generally fall into one of three categories: contested election, political appointment, or merit selection.
Do Retention Elections Work, G. Alan Tarr
Do Retention Elections Work, G. Alan Tarr
Missouri Law Review
During the twentieth century, judicial reformers attempting to depoliticize the selection of state court judges and increase respect for the courts advocated moving from competitive elections for judges to "merit selection" or - as it was initially known - the "Missouri Plan." During the 1960s and 1970s, these reformers enjoyed considerable success. Whereas in 1960 only three states - Alaska, Kansas, and Missouri - employed merit selection to choose state supreme court justices, by 1980 eighteen did so. Of course, adoption of merit selection did not altogether eliminate judicial elections, because judges appointed under merit selection are in most states …