Under the case or controversy clause, the federal judiciary cannot address legal questions in the abstract; it may do so only in the course of resolving a case — that is, a dispute capable of resolution by a judicial order imposing a specific form of relief through an “an immediate… Read More »
Judicial review skeptics often emphasize “political safeguards” that are supposed to reduce or eliminate the need for judicial review. Responding to these claims,… Read More »
Introduction
Few scholars would dispute that the way in which political institutions are designed affects the way that policymakers behave or the kinds of policies that are produced. Nor can it seriously be argued that courts are somehow an exception to the basic rule that institutional design matters. It is… Read More »
In 2006, Justices Sandra Day O’Connor and Stephen Breyer initiated a campaign to elevate public concern for the independence of our judiciary. They were of course correct that judicial independence is indispensable to public trust in the integrity of our government. Judges must be required and helped to maintain personal… Read More »
For centuries, livestock owners have marked their animals by clipping their ears. Paradoxically, the term we give to special interest provisions—”earmarks”—conflicts with its origins in this agrarian practice. Far from revealing ownership, earmarks actually conceal their supporters and beneficiaries. Undetected, these provisions are less costly because they face less opposition… Read More »