From Solicitor General to Supreme Court Nominee: Responsibilities, History, and the Nomination of Elena Kagan, by Susan Navarro Smelcer, Analyst on the Federal Judiciary. Kenneth R. Thomas, Legislative Attorney, June 23, 2010 “On May 10, 2010, President Obama nominated Solicitor General Elena Kagan to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens. If confirmed, Elena Kagan would… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Courts
Federal Court Vacancies Total 97
United States Courts: “A total of 97 vacancies exist among the 876 Article III judgeships in the Federal Judiciary. Eighteen of the 179 courts of appeals judgeships are vacant, as well as 79 of the 675 district court judgeships. Nominations made by the President and awaiting Senate action are pending for 12 of the 18… Continue Reading
An Empirical Analysis of the Senate Judiciary Committee Hearings of Supreme Court Nominees, 1939-2009
May it Please the Senate: An Empirical Analysis of the Senate Judiciary Committee Hearings of Supreme Court Nominees, 1939-2009, Lori A. Ringhand, University of Georgia School of Law and Paul M. Collins Jr., University of North Texas, June 25, 2010. UGA Legal Studies Research Paper No. 10-12 “This paper examines the questions asked and answers… Continue Reading
ACLU Report on Nomination of Elena Kagan to be Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
Follow up to previous postings on Supreme Court Nominee Elena Kagan, see the Report of the American Civil Liberties Union on the Nomination of Elena Kagan to be Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, June 21, 2010 “The simple truth is that there is much that we do not know about Kagans views on… Continue Reading
Gulf Oil Spill: Order Granting Preliminary Injunction
Follow up to postings on the Gulf Coast oil spill, from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana: Gulf Oil Spill; Order Granting Preliminary Injunction (Hornbeck v. Salazar CA 10-1663), June 22, 2010 Gulf Oil Spill; Drilling Moratorium Decision (Hornbeck v. Salazar CA 10-1663), June 22, 2010 Continue Reading
In re: Deepwater Horizon Cases Allotted to Section J – Judge Barbier
Follow up to postings on the Gulf Coast oil spill – United States District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana: “Over 30 cases relating to the Deepwater Horizon Explosion and Oil Spill have been assigned to Judge Carl Barbier, Section J. The Deepwater Horizon incident has led to claims for the death of 11 individuals, numerous… Continue Reading
Federal Judges Surveyed on Criminal Sentencing
Follow up to previous posting sentencing guidelines, “U.S. Sentencing Commission has published the results of the first-ever survey of federal trial judges to elicit their views about federal sentencing under the advisory guidelines system in effect since 2005. The survey, among many other findings, indicates that 62 percent of the responding judges believe that mandatory… Continue Reading
Supreme Court Rules Against Text Message Privacy, Permits Search of Public Employee's Pager
EPIC: “The Supreme Court has issued a ruling in City of Ontario v. Quon, a case concerning the reasonablenees of a search of a public employee’s pager. EPIC filed a “friend of the court” brief in the case, arguing that data minimization practices should be followed for electronic searches, and that the search, which uncovered… Continue Reading
National Archives Clinton Library to Open Additional Kagan Materials
News release: “On Friday, June 11, 2010, the Clinton Library [made] available an additional 41,759 pages of materials relating to Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan. The records [are] posted on their web site: www.clintonlibrary.gov. The opening includes materials primarily related to Kagans tenure in the White House Counsel’s Office. Other files concern her nomination to… Continue Reading
Text of Justice David Souter's Harvard Commencement remarks
Text of Justice David Souters speech during Harvard’s 359th Commencement, via Harvard Gazette. [Dan MacMeekin] Continue Reading
National Archives Clinton Library to Open Kagan Records
News release: “The William Clinton Presidential Library will open records relating to U.S. Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagans tenure at the White House Domestic Policy Council and the White House Counsels Office. The release of papers from the approximately 160,000 pages of material will be made available on the Clinton Library web site in batches… Continue Reading
Federal Judiciary Launches Enhanced Website
News release: “The Federal Judiciarys website, www.uscourts.gov, today unveils a host of enhancements. The site has been redesigned to make it more attractive, accessible, and useful to its diverse audience of users. The improvements further the websites mission of increasing public interest, awareness, and understanding of the federal court system and its functions, and to… Continue Reading
