Tuesday, February 23, 2021

Today's tidbits

The SCOTUS Historical Society has posted A Snow Story by Carter G. Phillips. The Society also has a documentary about FDR and the Courtpacking Controversy, which relates to an article in today's DJ, Academics and retired judges debate changes to the U.S. Supreme Court, about a discussion sponsored by UC Berkeley School of Law's Public Law and Policy Program:

  • "The most prominent suggestion, advocated by UC Berkeley School of Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky, is to add justices to the court, allowing President Joe Biden to reverse a 6-3 conservative majority if Democrats in Congress passed a statute and the new president signed it."
  • "Orin S. Kerr, a UC Berkeley School of Law professor, said a Democratic-led court expansion would lead to endless additions to the court whenever one party controls both the presidency and the Senate. ... His solution would be to keep the court at nine members but limit justices to 18-year terms. And if a justice died or retired before their term was completed, the Senate leader of the party of the president who nominated him or her would choose someone to fill the remainder of the term."
  • "Retired D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Justice Janice Rogers Brown, known for her conservative judicial views, proposed an alternate constitutional amendment that would impose a mandatory retirement age."
Also of note, Law360 has Retiring Calif. Federal Judge To Give Biden Another Opening: "U.S. District Judge Virginia A. Phillips plans to retire next year after presiding in California's Central District for more than two decades, opening an 18th seat on the Golden State's federal bench that President Joe Biden could fill."

And The Recorder reports California Justices Predict Court Technology Changes Will Outlast Pandemic about a program where Justices Kruger and Jenkins were speaking on elimination of bias and other topics.