Creating precedent for the law The term “legislating from the bench” is frequently used but rarely explained. In the 2008 presidential debates Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) promised he would not appoint judges who legislate from the bench. But as Bruce Peabody, author of Legislating from the Bench, a Definition and a Defense, told the HPR, … Read more
Methods of appointing State Supreme Court judges That law be applied fairly and impartially is a defining ideal of the American legal system. Yet while impartiality lies at the foundation of our courts, it is surprisingly difficult to achieve. Charles Hall, director of communications for Justice at Stake, a nonpartisan campaign for “fair and impartial” … Read more
Obama and the conservative legal movement That a president would search for judges who are ideological allies is unsurprising, to say the least. Certainly we are used to the idea that this is how presidents behave when it comes toƒ their Supreme Court nominees. President Bush vetted his nominees to the federal courts of appeals … Read more
A changing legal landscape In American history civil rights issues have often found their footing in the high courts. Decisions such as the recent Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts’ ruling legalizing same-sex marriage in Goodrige v. Department of Public Health exemplify the courts’ ability to swiftly expand civil rights. However Proposition 8 in California, which … Read more
Judicial experience and Supreme Court nominations In 2005, President George W. Bush selected John G. Roberts and Samuel A. Alito to serve as the 109th and 110th justices on the U.S. Supreme Court. Roberts’ confirmation went relatively smoothly, while Alito’s, in the wake of the aborted nomination of Harriet Miers, White House Counsel and the … Read more
How the D.C. Circuit Court shaped the war on terror We have assumed, as we must, that the allegations made in the Government’s charge against Hamdan are true…But in undertaking to try Hamdan and subject him to criminal punishment, the Executive is bound to comply with the Rule of Law that prevails in this jurisdiction.” … Read more
Roberts, Kennedy, and Collegiality on the Supreme Court During the summer of 2006, Chief Justice John Roberts spoke publicly about the need for greater unity on the nation’s highest court. In a commencement address at Georgetown Law School, he urged that “unanimity, or near-unanimity” would yield “clarity and guidance” for lawyers and lower courts trying … Read more