Judges Commons^™

Participation By The Public In The Federal Judicial Selection Process, William G. Ross

Vanderbilt Law Review

The firestorm ignited by the 1987 nomination of Robert H. Bork provided a vivid reminder that public opinion and organized interest groups can have a potent and even decisive impact upon the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices and other federal judges. Al-though the Constitution vests the prerogative of nomination in the President and the power of confirmation in the Senate, the public also is a partner in the selection process in ways that often extend far beyond the citizenry's election of its President and representatives in the Senate.Public opinion has influenced the judicial selection process throughout the history …

Books Received, Law Review Staff

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Books Received

CONTRACT LAW IN THE U.S.S.R. AND THE UNITED STATES, VOL. I: HISTORY AND GENERAL CONCEPT

By E. Allan Farnsworth and Viktor P. Mozolin

Washington, D.C.: International Law Institute, 1987. Pp.xiii, 340. $35.00

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FOREIGN RELATIONS AND NATIONAL SECURITY LAW: CASES, MATERIALS AND SIMULATIONS

By Thomas M. Franck and Michael J. Glennon

St. Paul, Minnesota: West Publishing Company, 1987. Pp.lxiv, 941

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THE GRAND STRATEGY OF THE UNITED STATES IN LATIN AMERICA

By Tom J. Farer

New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction Books, 1988. Pp. xxxii, 294

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JUDGES

By David Pannick

New York: Oxford University Press,1987. Pp. vii, 255. …

Book Review: Unlikely Heroes By Jack Bass, David B. Filvaroff

Vanderbilt Law Review

Unlikely Heroes is designed for both the lawyer and the general reader. It does not purport to offer careful legal analysis of constitutional doctrine or to measure the Fifth Circuit's actions during this era against any articulated concept of the proper role of the judiciary in a federal system. To the extent that Bass raises any questions about the propriety of the judges' conduct or decisions, he appears to conclude that they were fully justified by the nature of the issues presented and by the demands of the times.Whatever its intended audience, however, the book would have benefited from a …

Book Reviews, Lawrence M. Friedman, Allaire U. Karzon

Vanderbilt Law Review

The Politics of Justice: Lower Federal Judicial Selection and the Second Party System - Book Author: Kermit L. Hall; Book Reviewed by Lawrence M. Friedman

In The Politics of Justice, Kermit L. Hall, a history professor at Wayne State University, takes a look at the way Presidents from Jackson through Buchanan picked judges for the federal district courts and for the territories. There were 240 such appointments during the period studied...

There is something of a literature on the selection process,"although Hall's book does fill a rather glaring hole. The tale Hall tells rings true if we ignore a few …

Book Reviews, Stephen L. Wasby, Herbert A. Johnson

Vanderbilt Law Review

The Courts and Social Policy Author: Donald L. Horowitz

Reviewed by Stephen L. Wasby

Donald Horowitz's The Courts and Social Policy is a serious effort to deal with the question of judicial capacity. Horowitz talks first of the expansion of judicial responsibility, which he thinks is a departure from the traditional exercise of the judicial function, and then explores the sources of this growth, particularly expansive statutory interpretation. He believes that courts do not do well at interpreting the mixes of statutes, regulations, and local arrangements with which they are faced more and more frequently. "Griggs v. Duke Power Co.," …

Crisis In The Courts: Proposals For Change, Griffin B. Bell

Vanderbilt Law Review

The popular conception of the crisis in the courts focuses upon the condition of the courts and particularly upon the increasing volume of disputes that are presented for resolution. For example,Judge Ruggero J. Aldisert of the Third Circuit, one of the busiest federal circuits, has observed: "The reality is that today there is a mad rush to the Federal courts." The available statistics reflect Judge Aldisert's observation. For instance, according to the most recent report of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, record numbers of cases have been filed in the circuit and district courts during the past …

Judicial Impeachments And The Struggle For Democracy In South Carolina, James W. Ely, Jr.

Vanderbilt Law Review

Judicial tenure had become a sensitive issue in the colonies before the American Revolution. Although the Act of Settlement of 1701 guaranteed tenure during good behavior for judges in England, this statute did not extend to the colonies, and royal governors regularly were instructed to issue judicial commissions at the pleasure of the Crown. Judges in New York briefly secured appointments for good behavior during the 1750's, but in 1761 the King in Council directed that henceforth no commission could be granted except at pleasure. In 1759 the Pennsylvania Assembly passed a measure providing that judges in that colony would …

A Primer Of Opinion Writing For Law-Clerks, George R. Smith

Vanderbilt Law Review

Not all appellate judges make the drafting of tentative opinions a part of their law clerks' duties. The practice, however, is increasing, perhaps as a result of the mounting case loads that now occupy the time of most appellate courts. Opinion writing by law clerks is certainly so widespread today that no symposium devoted to the duties of law clerks would be complete without some discussion of the subject. Except for the matter of final responsibility for the opinion, the problems that confront a law clerk in the preparation of an opinion include those that confront the judge himself in …

Observations Of An Appellate Judge:The Use Of Law Clerks, Eugene A. Wright

Vanderbilt Law Review

Time-judicial time-is our most valuable commodity. We must employ it effectively and efficiently if we are to keep abreast of new developments in the law, new areas of litigation, and modern procedural improvements and to dispose of increasing backlogs of appealed cases. Circuit judges, each authorized two law clerks, have become increasingly dependent upon the help of their staffs to meet the demands of their expanding workload. The role of the law clerk is to aid the experienced judge in his ultimate task, decision-making. An appellate judge will have a varied background of skills and experience. Often he brings to …

Sample Instructions To Law Clerks, Frederick G. Hamley, Ruggero J. Aldisert

Vanderbilt Law Review

Sample Instructions to Law Clerks

Sample A -- Law Clerks for Judges of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals

Frederick G. Hamley

General Responsibilities

1. You should therefore adopt a professional attitude at the outset. 2. You will need to employ industrious work habits. 3. Cultivate efficient, time-saving ways of doing your work. 4. Make this a year of continuing legal education and an intensive training period. 5. You will come into possession of information concerning the processing of appeals which must remain secret until the opinions are filed. 6. Your prime loyalty is to your judge. 7. All of …

Prehearing Research And Screening In The Michigan Court Of Appeals: One Court's Method For Increasing Judicial Productivity, T. John Lesinski, N. O. Stockmeyer, Jr.

Vanderbilt Law Review

An overview of the organization and duties of the Michigan Court of Appeals may aid in understanding the function and operation of its prehearing system. The Michigan Court of Appeals is an intermediate appellate court of statewide jurisdiction.' It hears appeals taken as a matter of right from both civil and criminal judgments of inferior courts,' and has original jurisdiction in specified habeas corpus, superintending control, apportionment, quo warranto, and mandamus proceedings. The court also hears appeals by leave, including applications for delayed appeal not timely filed as of right, appeals from state administrative agencies (principally workmen's compensation awards), and …

Parajudges And The Administration Of Justice, Tom C. Clark

Vanderbilt Law Review

The parajudge idea, like the paramedical and paralegal proposals, has met with opposition. Many persons have objected on the ground that since the judiciary's work has become increasingly complex and specialized, it is foolish to expect a nonprofessional with less training to handle it properly. On the other hand, many persons have raised more pragmatic objections based upon the argument that past parajudge systems have, regardless of the reasons, led to inadequate adjudication without reducing the strain on the judiciary. To evaluate these criticisms, we must first understand both the desperate condition of our judicial system today and the most …

The Haynsworth Affair Reconsidered: The Significance Of Conflicting Perceptions Of The Judicial Role, Edward N. Beiser

Vanderbilt Law Review

Between 1900 and 1968, the Senate had refused to confirm an appointee to the Supreme Court on only one occasion. Then, within a two year period, the Senate twice refused to confirm an appointment: Associate Justice Abe Fortas, nominated as Chief Justice in 1968, was never acted upon because of a Senate filibuster,and his name was withdrawn; and Judge Clement Haynsworth, whose nomination provoked a great deal of debate and controversy, was ultimately rejected by the Senate by a vote of 55 to 45. These two incidents marked a distinct change from the traditional custom of Senatorial acquiescence to Presidential …

Better Days In Court For A New Day's Problems, Roger J. Traynor

Vanderbilt Law Review

We do not lack first-rate proposals for court organization and administration and procedures that would befit a new day. Neither do we lack well-conceived plans for the selection and retention of judges that would attract able and independent men to the bench. Nevertheless, the few states that have undertaken substantial reforms are far outnumbered by those that have not. It is high time to inquire why there has been such a woeful lack of will in the legal profession throughout the country to have done with ways so antiquated as chronically to impede the just operation of the laws. It …

Book Reviews, Richard G. Singer, Alfred H. Knight, Iii

Vanderbilt Law Review

Counsel on Appeal Edited by Arthur A. Charpentier New York: McGraw-Hill, 1968. Pp. xi, 223.

reviewer: Richard G. Singer

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Law Without Sanctions By Michael Barkun New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1968. Pp. 175. $6.50

reviewer: Alfred H. Knight, III

The Role Of The American Bar Association In The Selection Of Federal Judges: Episodic Involvement To Institutionalized Power, Joel B. Grossman

Vanderbilt Law Review

One phenomenon of recent domestic politics has been the resurgence of the American Bar Association as a vital, and often influential, group in the political process as well as in the legal profession. There is no better characterization of this than the ABA's assumption of a lead position in a profession-wide campaign to improve the quality of judges selected for the several court systems in the United States. In a relatively short span of time, the ABA has grown from a group with a minimum of influence to one with a quasi-formal role in the federal selection process. Its success …

Book Review, W. N. Ethridge, Jr.

Vanderbilt Law Review

The consummation of Llewellyn's particular interest in the craft of appellate judging was his classic The Common Law Tradition: Deciding Appeals, which he completed in 1960. After reading it,no appellate judge could decide a case or write an opinion without being affected to some extent by Llewellyn's method and criteria. He conceived of law as the product of a rational process. The traditional dichotomy of reason and experience are reconcilable by development of legal methods in a rational framework. This technique clarifies and supports the sociological jurisprudence of Holmes, Cardozo, and Brandeis.

The Opinions Of Hughes And Sutherland And The Rights Of The Individual, R. Perry Sentell, Jr.

Vanderbilt Law Review

A pair of tasks are undertaken by Mr. Sentell in this article: First, he analyzes and compares the opinions of Justices Sutherland and Hughes on the substantive and procedural rights of individuals, and cites both contemporary and present day comment on these opinions. Second, he probes the more difficult problem concerning the probability of judges of highly dissimilar philosophies and backgrounds reaching consistent agreement in particular areas of the law.

Judicial Review And Party Politics, Wallace Mendelson

Vanderbilt Law Review

It has been suggested that intrusion upon legislative policy by judicial review "is a consequence of that fragmentation of political power which is normal in the United States. No cohesive majority,such as normally exists in Britain, would permit a politically irresponsible judiciary to usurp decision--making [policy] functions, but, for complex social and institutional reasons, there are few issues in the United States on which cohesive majorities exist." When they do exist, as in the recent tidal wave of anti-communism, the Supreme Court is not apt to test its strength against them. Rather it practices a judicious self-restraint. Distinguishing between parliamentary …

Samuel F. Miller, Justice Of The Supreme Court, 1862-1890, Charles Fairman

Vanderbilt Law Review

It was in the summer, about 1880. Miller, on the rounds of his circuit, had come to Omaha, where, in chambers, he was to hear counsel argue a mining case from Colorado. In the hall of the post office building, Miller saw Roscoe Pound (aetat circa 101 and already known to the Judge), and greeted him with the inquiry: "Well, sonny, how would you like to come with me while I hear a case?" Gladly the lad went along, and seated himself on the floor, Turkish-fashion, under the Judge's desk. The controversy concerned what was then a new and highly …

Recent Judicial Biographies: A Composite Review, Otis P. Dobie

Vanderbilt Law Review

The great Chief Justice of our time has been considerably recalled in the period under review. Pusey,' in a lengthy readable treatment that does not emphasize the legal, views Hughes as a liberal of circa 1910 who was uncomfortable but acquiescent amid the 1930's progressions. Interesting tidbits include a moving account of Hughes' mission to Holmes to request his resignation; bar letters to White complaining of the vagueness of Holmes' opinions; the friendship of Hughes with White and Harlan; Hughes' concern over the tendency of the New Deal brethren to expansively construe statutes and approve state taxes on interstate commerce …

Judge Learned Hand And The Limits Of Judicial Discretion, Robert S. Lancaster

Vanderbilt Law Review

Learned Hand stands among the great judges of the Anglo-American legal tradition. He is preeminently the judge's judge. His long judicial career, spanning one of the crucial periods in the development of American law, and his long service on the bench in a circuit where crucial legal issues come into final focus and where a major part of the commercial law of the nation is first enunciated and explained, peculiarly fit him for the task of explaining the judge's function in the American system of law and the court's role in our jural order. His own legal experience, his non-official …

Federal Right Jurisdiction And The Declaratory Remedy, Herman L. Trautman

Vanderbilt Law Review

Why should we have federal district courts? What should be their primary function? These questions are fundamental to the formulation of a rational basis for the distribution of judicial power between state courts and the trial courts of the federal government.

Our American federal system seeks as a constant objective an appropriate division of governmental power between a national unit, which deals with problems requiring uniform treatment, and state units, which have responsibility for problems depending more upon local conditions. Applying the principle to the federal district courts, it seems clear that their primary function should be to adjudicate federal …

Book Reviews, Ralph F. Fuchs, Will A. Wilkerson, Walter C. Lindley, Robert S. Lancaster, Vincent V. Thursby

Vanderbilt Law Review

Administrative Procedure Legislation in the State

By Ferrell Heady

Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1952. Pp. 137. $1.00.

reviewer: Ralph F. Fuchs

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Bar Examinations and Requirements for Admission to the Bar Prepared by Committee on Bar Examinations and Requirements for Admission to the Bar for the Survey of the Legal Profession

Colorado Springs: Shepard's Citations. 1952. Pp. xvii, 498. $5.00.

reviewer: Will Allen Wilkerson

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Trial Judge

By Bernard Botein

New York: Simon and Schuster, 1952.Pp. 337 $5.00.

reviewer: Walter C. Lindley

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The Spirit of Liberty: Papers and Addresses of Learned Hand Collected and with Introduction and …

Book Reviews, William J. Bowa, Emmett Conner (Reviewer), Charles K. Cosner (Reviewer), Charles E. Clark (Reviewer), Joseph Trachman (Reviewer)

Vanderbilt Law Review

Minimum Standards of Judicial Administration

Edited by Arthur T. Vanderbilt

Published by The Law Center of New York University for The National Conference of Judicial Councils, 1949. Pp. xxxii,752. $7.50

reviewer: William J. Bowa

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Availability for Work

By Ralph Altman

Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1950. Pp. 350. $4.50

reviewer: Emmett Conner, Charles K. Cosner

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Forrester's Edition of Dobie and Ladd's Cases and Materials on Federal Jurisdiction and Procedure

By Ray Forrester

St. Paul: West Publishing Co., 1950, Pp. vii, 990. $8.50

reviewer: Charles E. Clark

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Life Insurance and Estate Tax Planning

By William J. Bowe

Nashville: Vanderbilt …