State Courts
In the beginning, judges in the 13 original states either were appointed by the governor or selected by the legislature. Over the next 80 years, however, a majority of states […]
Court Administration, International, State Courts
In 2014, two years after graduating law school, I was appointed to serve as a municipal court judge in Guadalupe, Ariz.1 The town had the highest unemployment rate in Maricopa […]
International, Federal Courts
In recent years, governments from the state of Delaware to the Emirate of Dubai have created institutions specially designed to adjudicate transnational commercial disputes. These institutions are hybrids between courts […]
Court Administration, Civil Law, Judging, Law & Technology, Federal Courts
by Scott Dodson, Lee Rosenthal and Christopher L. Dodson
Fall/Winter 2020–21 | Volume 104 Number 3Two great forces are upon us. One is COVID-19, a highly infectious disease that has disrupted society around the globe.1 The other is the constant push of technological advancement, which […]
Court Administration, Law & Technology
In the early months of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Texas judiciary focused on its response to the global pandemic. The Office of Court Administration (OCA), the judicial branch agency tasked […]
Court Administration
Efforts to strengthen security for judges and their families took on new urgency this year in the wake of the horrific murder of U.S. District Court Judge Esther Salas’s son […]
Court Administration, State Courts, Federal Courts
The foundation of our justice system is the jury trial. In criminal cases, the Sixth Amendment provides that “the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, […]
Law & Culture, Judging
by Bernice B. Donald, Jeffrey Rachlinski and Andrew J. Wistrich
Fall/Winter 2020–21 | Volume 104 Number 3To better understand the effect of implicit bias in the courtroom, Judge Bernice Donald of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit talked with Professors Jeffrey Rachlinski and Andrew Wistrich of Cornell Law School.
International, Rule of Law
by Allyson K. Duncan and John Macy
Fall/Winter 2020–21 | Volume 104 Number 3In late 2019, the Polish Sejm approved yet another law aimed at cabining the structure and function of the judiciary. The new law, popularly referred to as a “muzzle” law, empowers a disciplinary chamber to bring proceedings against judges for questioning the ruling party’s platform. The law allows the Polish government to fire judges, or cut their salaries, for speaking out against legislation aimed at the judiciary, or for questioning the legitimacy of new judicial appointees.
Rule of Law, State Courts, Federal Courts
I speak today about the importance of fair and impartial courts and the role of judicial independence in achieving that goal. I begin with two stories. Some years ago, my […]
