How Far Out Of Step Is The Supreme Court Of The United States?, Brian Christopher Jones
Aug 2015
How Far Out Of Step Is The Supreme Court Of The United States?, Brian Christopher Jones
Brian Christopher Jones
This piece compares the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) and the UK Supreme Court (UKSC) regarding three major areas of interest: court communications, cameras in the courtroom, and judicial selection. Ultimately, it finds that, compared to their neighbour across the pond, the US Supreme Court is deeply out of step. This, coupled with other problems for SCOTUS, could ultimately hurt their legitimacy and constitutional review authority.
The Contours Of Judicial Tenure In State Courts Of Last Resort: Accountability Vs. Independence, Todd A. Curry
Jul 2013
The Contours Of Judicial Tenure In State Courts Of Last Resort: Accountability Vs. Independence, Todd A. Curry
Todd A. Curry
The study of state courts of last resort is a field which has, up until recently, been significantly underrepresented in political science (Baum 1987, Dubois 1980). The bulk of work in judicial politics over the last fifty years has focused on the federal system. Furthermore, the study of state courts allows for a true comparative analysis. The methods of selection used for the staffing of state courts of last resort are highly varied. There are five distinctly different methods which are used for judicial selection in the states, and many states have institutional nuances that provide further variation for study. …
Public Confidence And Judicial Campaigns, Michael R. Dimino
Dec 2009
Public Confidence And Judicial Campaigns, Michael R. Dimino
Michael R Dimino
My purpose in this essay is to evaluate one of the alternative grounds suggested by Professor Geyh: that the elimination of judicial elections and limits on judicial candidates’ speech can be defended as means of "preserv[ing] public confidence in the courts." Such confidence is necessary, the argument goes, because the people would refuse to "acquiesce[] in the orderly administration of justice" if they believed that judges were deciding cases on the basis of their own preferences (or the electorate’s) rather than on the law.
We Have Met The Special Interests, And We Are They, Michael R. Dimino
Dec 2008
We Have Met The Special Interests, And We Are They, Michael R. Dimino
Michael R Dimino
My purpose here is to broaden our focus and argue that, while the influence of campaign contributors is likely to draw most of the popular attention surrounding the power of special interests within the judiciary, the exercise of judicial power will advantage certain interests at the expense of others regardless of the method of judicial selection a particular state uses. Accordingly, we should be careful that attempts to control the influence of special interests do not, in fact, simply advantage one set of special interests.
The Missouri Plan In National Perspective, Stephen Ware
Dec 2008
The Missouri Plan In National Perspective, Stephen Ware
Stephen Ware
We should distinguish the process that initially selects a judge from the process that determines whether to retain that judge on the court. Judicial selection and judicial retention raise different issues. In this paper, I primarily focus on selection. I summarize the fifty states’ methods of supreme court selection and place them on a continuum from the most populist to the most elitist. Doing so reveals that the Missouri Plan is the most elitist (and least democratic) of the three common methods of selecting judges in the United States. After highlighting this troubling characteristic of the Missouri Plan’s process of …
The Bar’S Extraordinarily Powerful Role In Selecting The Kansas Supreme Court, Stephen Ware
Dec 2008
The Bar’S Extraordinarily Powerful Role In Selecting The Kansas Supreme Court, Stephen Ware
Stephen Ware
In supreme court selection, the bar has more power in Kansas than in any other state. This extraordinary bar power gives Kansas the most elitist and least democratic supreme court selection system in the country. While members of the Kansas bar make several arguments in defense of the extraordinary powers they exercise under this system, these arguments rest on a one-sided view of the role of a judge.
Judicial Independence: A Call For Reform, Terence Lau
Dec 2007
Judicial Independence: A Call For Reform, Terence Lau
Terence Lau
According to retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, judicial independence is threatened now more so than any other time throughout history. Attacks on the judiciary have crossed the line from legitimate criticism to partisan harangues that threaten the ability of judges to rule fairly and without bias. This Article begins with a historical look at judicial independence as it has shaped the Supreme Court, including the impeachment of Samuel Chase, Ex ParteMcCardle and the court-packing plan and concludes with a call for reform to the judicial appointment process to permit greater transparency in judicial selection.
Judicial Selection In South Carolina: Who Gets To Judge?, Kevin R. Eberle
Apr 2002
Judicial Selection In South Carolina: Who Gets To Judge?, Kevin R. Eberle
Kevin Eberle
A review of the judicial selction process in South Carolina and comments on the effectiveness of changes to the selection process
On The Linguistic Design Of Multinational Courts—The French Capture, Mathilde Cohen
Dec 19
On The Linguistic Design Of Multinational Courts—The French Capture, Mathilde Cohen
Mathilde Cohen
This Article discusses the importance of language in the institutional design of European and international courts, which I refer to as “linguistic design.” What is at stake in the choice a court’s official or working language? Picking a language has far-reaching consequences on a court’s composition and internal organizational culture, possibly going as far as influencing the substantive law produced. This is the case because language choices impact the screening of the staff and the manufacture of judicial opinions. Linguistic design imposes costs on non-native speakers forced to use a second (or third) language and confers a set of advantages …
