Entries tagged with 'Courts'
Hello, Goodbye
As I sat in the waiting room for a doctor's appointment last Friday morning, reading a book that had been taking me a while to get through, I thought to myself, "I will probably finish this book today--that will...
Kagan Confirmed!
Yesterday, around 3:45pm, the Senate voted 63-37 in favor of confirming Elena Kagan as the 112th Supreme Court Justice. After three days of debate on the Senate floor, and an 87-day-long confirmation process, the Senate finally gave its consent to...
Graphic Justice
If all goes according to plan, the Senate will vote next week on the nomination of Elena Kagan to be the 112th Supreme Court Justice. The exact date and time of the vote has not yet been scheduled, but the...
How Do you Open a Closed Book?
Last week, Justice Sonia Sotomayor announced that she will be publishing a memoir about her childhood in the Bronx and her journey to becoming the first Latina Supreme Court Justice. This doesn't seem like incredibly consequential information, but it's exciting...
One More Step
Earlier today, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to advance Elena Kagan's nomination to the United States Supreme Court. The Committee convened at 10:00am for a two-and-a-half hour session on the nomination, culminating in a 13-6 vote in favor of...
Big Guns
The 2009 term came to a dramatic end nearly three weeks ago with the release of the decision in McDonald v. Chicago, limiting states' and cities' abilities to enact gun control laws. The 5-4 decision overturned a Chicago city ban...
DOJ Files Suit
In an expected follow-up to President Barack Obama's immigration speech last Thursday at American University, the Department of Justice has filed suit against Arizona's controversial immigration law, SB 1070. While the major hype generated by opponents of this law has...
The (Not-Quite) Conclusion
The Kagan hearings have officially concluded. A whirlwind of questioning and testimony from panelists gave watchers plenty of new information about the nominee. The Alliance for Justice has prepared a very useful (and concise!) report on the hearings, identifying...
Reporting Live! Kagan Hearing Video
I was honored to be able to witness history yesterday, attending "Day 3" of the hearings on the nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the United States Supreme Court. In hopes of sharing my experience with RACblog readers, I...
Barreling On
This week's Supreme Court decision in McDonald v. Chicago, makes it much more difficult, if not impossible, for states and cities to pass meaningful gun control legislation. In some ways, it's a decision of interest mostly to lawyers and law...
What Happened Today?
What happened at today's edition of the Supreme Court confirmation hearings? Well, that depends who you ask. Some will praise Solicitor General Kagan for her candid answers to questions about the law and for sharing her perspective on various...
A Supreme Day
Today was the most eventful day that most Supreme Court aficionados can remember. Four events captured headlines and sent SCOTUS-watchers on an emotional rollercoaster. To begin, yesterday, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's husband, Martin Ginsburg, passed away after a battle...
Kagan Hearings: A Preview
Jessica Weiser, Program Associate for Judicial Nominations gives us a preview into next week's Senate hearings for Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan & advises on how to follow along. We interrupted her busy work day so she could brief us on the issues at hand, and what Reform Jews in particular are looking for.
Oil Spill Update: Drilling Ban Overturned
Earlier this week the District Court in New Orleans ruled to overturn the temporary moratorium on offshore drilling issued by the Obama Administration in response to the ongoing oil spill disaster in the Gulf. The six-month moratorium on new drilling...
You Asked, We Sent
Yesterday, the RAC sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee and, based on YOUR submissions at AskElenaKagan.com, suggested questions that Committee members should ask during the hearings on Elena Kagan's nomination to the Supreme Court. At the hearings,...
Religion? Yes, Please.
Only one week remains before the start of the hearings on Solicitor General Kagan's nomination to the Supreme Court. The hearings are an opportunity for the Senators both to learn more about the nominee's judicial philosophy and promote dialogue and...
Calm Before the Storm?
I haven't written a blog post about Elena Kagan's nomination to the Supreme Court in over two weeks. Why not? Frankly--it's because there hasn't been much to say. Dahlia Lithwick of Slate referred to the nomination as the "Elena...
Unanimously Against Discrimination
As the Supreme Court nears the end of its 2009 term, it must still issue over 30 opinions on cases that were heard during the year (the Court has already issued 53 opinions this term). Decisions on the most...
The Bridal Path Not Taken
I'm a little behind in my reading, so I just caught the piece in the May 17 NY Times Magazine about the implicit message sent by the fact that the two most recent Supreme Court nominees are both female,...
A Second Chance at Life
Randi Levine is a Staff Attorney at Advocates for Children of New York and a former Eisendrath Legislative Assistant at the Religious Action Center. All views expressed are her own. When Ian arrived at the prison processing center, nobody...
Hear Ye! Hearing!
In the few short weeks since her nomination to the Supreme Court, Elena Kagan has been transformed from a relatively-obscure political figure into practically a household name. And rightfully so. Supreme Court Justices have more of an impact on...
Respecting the cross and the law
This post first appeared on the Washington Post's On Faith section and is republished with permission. The religious community was deeply split over the recent Supreme Court decision (Salazar v. Buono) about a cross in the Mojave Desert honoring our...
Conference Call: You're Invited!
Faith Community Conference Call: Elena Kagan and the Judicial Nomination Process The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism and the United Methodist Church-General Board of Church and Society invite you to learn from leading experts about Supreme Court nominee...
Introduce Yourself!
Want to know more about the newest Supreme Court nominee, Solicitor General Elena Kagan? Who better to tell you about Elena Kagan than Ms. Kagan herself? The White House released a 4-minute video of Solicitor General Kagan, speaking directly...
Ask Elena Kagan
This morning, President Obama made his second nomination to the Supreme Court, tapping Solicitor General Elana Kagan to be the 112th Supreme Court Justice. The RAC's Director, Rabbi David Saperstein, and Associate Director, Mark Pelavin, were privileged to be...
Confirm Goodwin Liu!
On Wednesday, the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) expressed support for the confirmation of Goodwin Liu to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Prof. Liu is the first judicial candidate that the URJ has supported since the passage of our...
15 Minutes on the Court
President Obama's selection of his second Supreme Court nominee is imminent. Most people think the announcement will happen sometime next week, but White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs neglected to rule out an announcement this week. So, what can...
Justices at a Cross(roads)
On Wednesday, the Justices released their opinions in Salazar v. Buono, a case that revolves around the legality of an 8-foot cross displayed as a war memorial on public property in the Mojave Desert. The case questions whether the transfer...
Business First
As the entire nation seems to be discussing who will be the next Supreme Court Justice, the Supreme Court itself is simply continuing on with its day-to-day business, hearing oral arguments and issuing decisions. On Monday, the Court re-convened for...
Celebrate 90 (years) in 90 (seconds)
Today, retiring Justice John Paul Stevens turns 90 years old. Here are 9 things you can do in only 90 seconds (each) to celebrate his birthday and his legacy: 1) Learn about Justice Stevens' legacy as described by Jeffrey...
Name that Justice
As you are contemplating the characteristics and qualities that make a good Justice (and tweeting them with the hashtag #AGoodNom or leaving them as comments on the blog post from earlier this week), it's worth browsing the (not-so) short list...
What Makes for #AGoodNom?
The search is on for the next Supreme Court Justice. What qualities and characteristics do you think President Obama should be looking as he decides who to nominate? Are there any demographic criteria that are particularly important to you?...
Justice Stevens WILL Retire
This morning, Justice John Paul Stevens announced that he will be retiring from the Supreme Court at the end of the current term. He sent a simple letter, with today's date, to President Obama: My dear Mr. President: Having...
The Prom-ise of Justice
Students in our nation's public schools have a long history of leading the efforts to identify, expand, and secure fundamental rights and liberties. In the latest chapter of this glorious tradition, Constance McMillen filed suit (with the help of...
Can We Discriminate?
This week, the Union for Reform Judaism signed onto an amicus brief for the upcoming Supreme Court case, Christian Legal Society v. Martinez. This case began when the University of California-Hastings School of Law denied formal recognition to the...
Our Senior Justice
It is rare for a Supreme Court Justice to grant a reporter an exclusive interview. In fact, it is rare for a Justice to make any press statements at all. But, Jeffrey Toobin clearly has the clout and respect...
Does Religion Matter?
Six Catholics, two Jews, and one Protestant serve on the United States Supreme Court. Justice John Paul Stevens, the lone Protestant, who turns 90-years-old on April 20th, is expected to retire in the coming months. Earlier this week, with these...
Update on Kiyemba
In October, the RACblog's "Focus on the Court" series highlighted the Supreme Court's grant of the cert petition in Kiyemba v. Obama. As you will remember, this case involved 13 men from the Muslim-Chinese Uighur community being held at...
Putting Out Fires
On Monday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Lewis v. Chicago, a case considering the statute of limitations to sue an employer for using a hiring test with a disparate impact. This case began in Chicago, where 26,000...
A "Must-Read"
Tom Goldstein, editor of SCOTUSblog and speaker at the RAC's recent conference "The Pew and the Bench," wrote a great article in SCOTUSblog yesterday, with a title tells all: "On October 4th, Elena Kagan Will Ask Her First Question As...
Don't Judge Me
Last week, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that "the biggest open secret" in the federal case currently being argued in California challenging Proposition 8 is that the judge who is hearing and deciding the case, Vaughn Walker, is gay. In...
Catch up on Your Reading!
An intense and record-breaking snow storm descended on D.C. this week, halting most official business throughout the city--including within our courts. Court dates and trials were postponed and hearings and confirmation votes for judicial nominees were rescheduled. The Blog...
O'Connor on Indpendence
Former Supreme Court Justice O'Connor has made headlines in the past week in the wake of the Citizens United campaign finance case. Her comments are notable both because the recent ruling overturned a decision in favor of imposing limits on...
Spurning the Supremes?
The blogosphere was set ablaze in the wake of the State of the Union address on Wednesday evening in which President Obama rebuked the Supreme Court's recent decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. The President couched his remarks...
Money Makes Elections Go Round
Yesterday, in one of the most far-reaching and activist Supreme Court decisions in years, five Justices unraveled campaign finance law, giving corporations and unions more power to influence elections. The antagonistically divisive 5-4 decision in Citizens United v. FEC...
Focus on the Court: 37 Years of Roe v. Wade
Today marks the 37th anniversary of the Supreme Court's landmark decision in Roe v. Wade. As Friday at the RACBlog is our "Focus on the Courts" day, it is only appropriate that we use this time to do a quick review...
Equal Rights on Trial
The biggest news coming out of the courts this week was the start of the federal trial on California's Proposition 8. As you will recall, in May of 2008, the California Supreme Court ruled that the state's ban on same-sex...
An Anniversary NOT to Celebrate
Anniversaries are often occasions to celebrate, and this week marked the one year anniversary of President Obama's nomination of Dawn Johnsen to head the Office of Legal Counsel at the Department of Justice. But instead of celebrating, we are instead...
Reflections on "The Pew and the Bench"
Rev. Ken Brooker Langston is the an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the coordinator of the Disciples Center for Public Witness. He attended the Religious Action Center's Dec.8th, 2009 conference, "The Pew and the...
The Pew and the Bench
What is the connection between the pew and the bench? On Tuesday, the Religious Action Center and the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights brought together more than 40 faith leaders to discuss this critical question at the...
For Now, Photos of Abuse Remaining Confidential
On Monday, the Supreme Court released its first decision of the term, vacating a Second Circuit ruling that would have required the government to make public photos depicting abuse of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan. The decision, just three...
Don't Take Your Time
This week, Judge David Hamilton, President Obama's first judicial nominee, finally received a vote and was confirmed by the Senate. Judge Hamilton's nomination had been pending for over 8 months--since March 17th, 2009! Organized conservative opposition to Hamilton's nomination delayed...
The Definition of "Jewish"
This week, the New York Times published an article about a fascinating case making its way through the British Court system. According to the Times article, the case addresses the ubiquitous and vexing question: "Who is a Jew?" Of course,...
Word of the Week
In the world of nominations, "obstructionism" is the word of the week. President Obama has nominated a total of 23 judges to the federal bench, only five of whom have received a vote in the Senate (ten of these...
Where Do We Go From Here?
The biggest news coming out of the Supreme Court this week was its grant of the cert petition in Kiyemba v. Obama. This will be the first time that the Obama Administration will argue before the Court in a...
Big Guns
There are few issues in American political life that stir up more controversy and passion than gun control. Reasonable people have disagreed for decades about the intent, meaning, and application of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution....
Supreme Insider
For the culmination of its Supreme Court Week, C-SPAN featured (at least) 30-minute interviews with each of the 9 sitting Justices and former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. These interviews are available to view or read on the C-SPAN website. The Justices...
30 Minutes to Argue
For me, simply visiting the Supreme Court is a humbling and awe-inspiring experience. So, I can only imagine the overwhelming range of emotions that lawyers arguing before the Court must feel. Last night's C-SPAN segment focused on two such...
More Than Just the Nine
This week's C-SPAN segments have been a great reminder that the Supreme Court is much bigger (both literally and metaphorically) than the nine Justices who currently sit on the bench. On Wednesday, when I visited the Supreme Court to...
Full Court PRESS
Last night's C-SPAN segment on the Supreme Court focused on the press corps and its coverage of Supreme Court cases and decisions. C-SPAN spoke with Lyle Dennison, who has been covering the Court for close to 50 years, most recently...
A Window into Their World
Supreme Court Week has begun! As I type, the Court is hearing its first argument of the October 2009 term, and last night, CSPAN aired its 90-minute documentary about the Court, featuring interviews with reporters, Supreme Court staff, and the...
Supreme Court Week!
Next week, the Supreme Court term finally begins its new term. The docket for the October 2009 term (OT09) includes many fascinating cases, including cases that could answer such interesting questions as: Does it violate the Eighth Amendment's ban...
Obstruction Without Function
At the end of last week, the Senate finally confirmed one of President Obama's circuit court nominees! Judge Gerard Lynch was confirmed last Thursday, September 17th, by a vote of 94-3. Judge Lynch will serve on the 2nd Circuit,...
The Case That Should End Capital Punishment
Jonah Perlin is a former RAC Eisendrath Legislative Assistant. He has a Masters degree in Religious Studies from the University of Chicago and is currently a first-year law student at Georgetown University. All views expressed are his own. There are many...
They're baaaack!
DC is back in action. Congress has returned and the Supreme Court has heard its first case of the term (well--it was technically a pre-term case, but, right now, that feels like a distinction without a difference). In the judiciary world, the...
Is Stevens Leavin'?
Not even a month after Sonia Sotomayor was confirmed as the newest Supreme Court Justice, speculation has already begun regarding who will be the next Justice to step down from the bench. This week, a flood of articles about Justice...
New Justice, Old justice
The following article was first published on August 28th, 2009 as an installment in the Union for Reform Judaism's "Ten Minutes of Torah" series. The usual August quietude has crept over Washington, D.C. The Congressional recess has rid the city of many...
Plugging into the Circuits
With all of the excitement surrounding the Supreme Court nomination this summer, it was easy (and perhaps necessary) for us to put the Circuit Courts temporarily on the back burner. But, now that Justice Sotomayor has assumed her seat on...
Who Shall Live and Who Shall Die...
I spend much of my time as the Program Associate for Judicial Nominations convincing people that Supreme Court decisions really do have an impact on the lives of individual Americans. Unfortunately, this reality was demonstrated all-too poignantly this week...
Cross Examining
On Saturday, Chief Justice John Roberts swore in Sonia Sotomayor as the newest member of the United States Supreme Court. Now, the latest iteration of the Roberts Court will prepare for the October Term 2009, or OT09 for you...
Sotomayor: Confirmed!
Yesterday, around 3:20pm, the Senate confirmed Sonia Sotomayor to be the 111th Supreme Court Justice. The final vote tally was 68-31. The 59 Democrats who were present (Senator Kennedy was unable to attend because of continuing health challenges), along with...
Sotomayor: The Final Stretch
We're nearing the end of the road. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has announced that a vote on Judge Sotomayor's nomination will likely occur at the end of next week, right before the Senate departs for the August recess. ...
Sotomayor: Moving Along...
The Senate Judiciary Committee voted today to advance the nomination of Judge Sotomayor. The vote count was 13-6, along party lines, with the exception of Senator Graham (SC), who was the sole Republican to vote in favor of Judge Sotomayor's...
Judicial Activism Redefined
In anticipation of tomorrow's Judiciary Committee vote on Judge Sotomayor's nomination to the Supreme Court, Senators on both sides of the aisle are publicly announcing how they will vote on her confirmation. Today, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee,...
The Final Countdown
Last week, the Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the United States Supreme Court. Sometime before August 7th, the full Senate will vote on whether to confirm Judge Sotomayor as the 111th...
Court Round-Up: The Media's Best of the Sotomayor Hearings
It's been a full week of excitement on Capitol Hill, where the Senate Judiciary Committee began confirmation hearings on Judge Sonia Sotomayor, President Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court. You've heard from us at the RAC all week (don't forget...
Sotomayor Hearings: Day 4 (More Video!)
While today's hearings may not have been substantively different from those of the past 3 days, they were certainly experientially different for me. Today I was inside the hearing room, physically watching the Senators and Judge Sotomayor engage with...
Day 3 is Complete!
The Sotomayor hearings chugged forward today as the Senators finished their first round of questioning and entered the second round. Even though Senator Leahy, the committee chair, told Committee members that they need not feel pressured to use all (or...
Sotomayor Hearings: Day 3 (With More Video!)
Things are heating up here in D.C., and I don't just mean weather-wise. This morning, I headed to Capitol Hill with RAC intern Madeline to get in on the excitement of the third day of Judge Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation...
Sotomayor Hearings: Day 2
Today's session of the Sotomayor hearings was far more dynamic than yesterday's, simply by nature of its format. Unlike yesterday, today Judge Sotomayor was able to have conversations and engage with the Senators. For the first round of questioning,...
Sotomayor Hearings: Day 1
The first day of hearings on Judge Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to the Supreme Court has come to an end. The members of the Judiciary Committee gave their opening statements and Judge Sotomayor offered her testimony. The Senator's speeches reflected...
Video: Judge Sotomayor's Hearings Begin Monday
Beginning at 10am on Monday July 10th, the Senate Judiciary Committee will be conducting hearings on the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the United States Supreme Court.The hearings are an opportunity to learn more about Judge Sotomayor's record, temperament...
WATCH!
On Monday July 13th, at 10:00am, the Senate Judiciary Committee will begin hearings on the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the United States Supreme Court. Hearings on a Supreme Court nomination are an opportunity to witness the political process...
A 'Case Study' in the Importance of the Courts
In recent weeks environmentalists have focused like laser beams on Capitol Hill, with the debate over climate legislation raging in the House and Senate. While it remains vitally important that Congress pass new legislation to protect our earth and all...
One More Crack
Yesterday was the 18th anniversary of President Reagan's nomination of Sandra Day O'Connor to be the first woman to serve on the United States Supreme Court. This landmark occasion was certainly cause for celebration, but, unfortunately, O'Connor's nomination was only...
OT08 is O-V-E-R (UPDATED)
The October 2008 Supreme Court Term (OT08) has come to an end. After deciding 79 cases (up from 71 in OT07 and 72 in OT06), the Justices have hung up their robes for the summer and Justice Souter said...
Surprise!
On Monday, the Supreme Court issued a surprising decision in Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District v. Holder. Based on the statements made and questions asked at the oral arguments in April, pundits and experts (and myself included) predicted with...
Extremists Blame "Jewish Power" for Sotomayor Nomination
Deborah Lauter is Civil Rights Director of the Anti-Defamation League. All views expressed are her own. In our work, every day we see white supremacists and extremists make anti-Semitic claims that Jews control the United States government, the banking...
Time for a Hearing
There are two types of debates that happen during a Supreme Court nomination--debates over issues and debates over process. The debates over issues began the moment that Judge Sotomayor was nominated. We have been blasted with news pieces about...
RACreads: Reviewing The Nine
As an infrequent reader of non-fiction, I was skeptical about the persistent praise of Jeffrey Toobin's The Nine. While intrigued by the subject matter that Toobin was tackling, I expected to be bored by a simple story laced with indigestible...
Window into the American Soul
In an article in Slate magazine last week, Dahlia Lithwick posed the following question to many prominent scholars, journalists and other experts on the Court: "Are confirmation hearings for a Supreme Court Justice a teachable moment?" The diverse answers are...
10 Days
I had a busy week. Judge Sotomayor had a busier week. Sonia Sotomayor has been the President's nominee to the Supreme Court for only 10 days. Yet, she has gotten quite a lot accomplished. She has already met with...
Ask Judge Sotomayor
So, we have a nominee in the pipeline. Now what? The confirmation of a Supreme Court Justice does not happen overnight. In fact, it takes an average of 72 days for a nominee to go from being named to...
Introducing Judge Sotomayor
As you have likely heard, this morning, President Obama nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor of the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals to be elevated to the United States Supreme Court (our own Mark Pelavin was in the room!). This was certainly...
Define: Empathy
The waiting game continues. President Obama has not yet announced his pick for the Supreme Court and various press reports have indicated that he is still in the process of making a decision. So, the national dialogue continues about...
Making History: Israeli High Court Rules in Favor of Reform Conversions
Today is a very important day for Progressive Judaism and the cause of Jewish pluralism in Israel. IRAC just won a precedent-setting case in the Israeli Supreme Court which says that the State has to provide equal funding for Reform...
Get Involved! Speak Up for (a) Justice
As you probably know (especially if you've been keeping up with Court Day on the RACblog!), Supreme Court Justice David Souter announced a few weeks ago that he'd be retiring from the court at the end of the term. For...
Delayed Discrimination
Despite many advances, women in the workplace continue to face numerous inequalities, from discriminatory paychecks to inadequate access to childcare. The Supreme Court's 7-2 decision in AT&T Corp. v. Hulteen, handed down yesterday, illustrated how the Court can be a...
In the Hands of the Courts and DOJ
We have long taken for granted that the religious clauses of the First Amendment guarantee our religious freedom in this country. Interpretation by the federal courts has defined this freedom more explicitly, outlining specific behaviors and practices that are and...
A Debate Not a Fight
Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL), the new Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee, wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post today, outlining the criteria that he values in a Justice: impartiality, integrity, legal expertise and respect for the rule of law. Taking...
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