Senate at a new low

Yesterday, for the first time, a circuit court nominee reported to the floor with bipartisan support has been successfully filibustered, breaking long-standing tradition and further shattering public confidence in the ability of the Senate to function responsibly within our democratic system.  This partisan action marks a new low in the politics of obstruction, hindering the process of putting judges in empty federal court seats across the country.Oklahoma Judge Robert Bacharach was nominated for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He was a noncontroversial nominee,...

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Cloture Filed on 10th Circuit Nominee Robert Bacharach

Judge BacharachThis afternoon Majority Leader Reid (D-NV) filed cloture on Judge Robert E. Bacharach’s nomination to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.  A vote is expected next Monday at 5:30pm.  Bacharach is a noncontroversial nominee, rated unanimously “well qualified” by the ABA, who was reported out of the Judiciary Committee with bipartisan support.  Ultraconservative Senators Tom Coburn (R-OK) and James Inhofe (R-OK) both strongly back his nomination.  Indeed, when recently asked about the efforts to block a vote on Judge Bacharach, Senator Coburn told The Oklahoman...

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Eighth Circuit Judge Michael Melloy to Take Senior Status in January

Judge Melloy var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-2327420-4']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })(); According to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Judge Michael Melloy...

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Cloture withdrawn, Judge Confirmed to the District of New Jersey

var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-2327420-4']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })(); Judge ShippThis evening the Senate confirmed Judge Michael Shipp to the District of New Jersey...

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Gallup Poll Reveals Growing Disapproval of Supreme Court

var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-2327420-4']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })(); A Gallup poll conducted two weeks after the end of the Supreme Court’s 2011-2012 term shows...

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Judiciary Committee still processing nominees; Senate still moving too slowly

Judge Kevin McNulty(District of New Jersey)On Monday, the Senate confirmed Kevin McNulty to the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey by a vote of 91-3 (with Senators Lee, DeMint, and Vitter voting as a continuing protest of President Obama’s recess appointments of executive nominees in January). Despite facing no substantive opposition, Judge McNulty waited for over seven months for his confirmation vote.  On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee reported out four district court nominees (on voice votes, with Senator Lee as the only opposition):Frank Paul Geraci,...

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There is more than one way to end DOMA

Cert petitions have been submitted to the Supreme Court in three separate cases that call into question the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a law that denies economic and other benefits to same-sex couples even in states where same-sex marriage is legal.  If the Court decides to hear one or more of them, its ruling could both determine the constitutionality of DOMA and could set a standard for how courts evaluate laws that discriminate against people on the basis of sexual orientation. Several federal courts have also found DOMA to be unconstitutional, including...

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Another challenge on the use of drones

The U.S. policy of using armed drones to kill American citizens suspected of terrorism is again being challenged in federal district court.The lawsuit, Al-Aulaqi v. Panetta, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia this week on behalf of three U.S. citizens who were killed by armed drone attacks in Yemen. Two civil rights groups, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Constitutional Rights, joined the suit and are seeking monetary damages from four top government officials for violating the Fifth Amendment right to due process, the Fourth Amendment right...

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New Report Questions Republican Support for Medical Malpractice Reform

var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-2327420-4']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })(); The U.S. House of Representatives voted yesterday to repeal the Patient Protection &...

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City of Pittsburgh to US Senate: Fill Judicial Vacancies

Access to justice is being stifled throughout the country, as more than eight percent of all federal judgeships are currently vacant while partisan gamesmanship in the U.S. Senate holds up the confirmation of judicial nominees.In Pittsburgh, the City Council is responding to this crisis by calling on Pennsylvania’s senators to do all they can to fill the state’s federal judicial vacancies by the end of the year:NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of Pittsburgh supports a strong judiciary, and calls on Pennsylvania Senators Bob Casey and Pat Toomey to recommend qualified nominees...

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“Mayor Franks” At It Again

by Greta FosterThis morning, the House Committee on the Judiciary held a markup on HR 3803, the District of Columbia Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.Based on the conclusion that an “unborn child is capable of experiencing pain at least by 20 weeks after fertilization,” the bill aims to restore the abortion limitations previously repealed by DC City Council in 2004. The bill would not only prohibit abortions for women 20 weeks or greater in term, unless to save the life of the woman, but it also comes with a penalty of up to two years in prison for violations.The bill was introduced by...

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Digging Deeper Into Ginsburg's Obamacare Opinion

Legal experts across the ideological spectrum have speculated on the dangers lurking in Chief Justice John Roberts' narrow opinion in upholding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. While some disagree on the decision’s potential impact in future cases, it certainly suggests a basis for limiting Congress’ legislative authority. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in her strong defense of the constitutionality of the ACA under the Constitution's commerce clause, points out the dangers of Roberts’ approach.Justice Ginsburg makes two important arguments for upholding the ACA under the commerce...

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Justice at Stake: Judicial Confirmations Needed Before the August Recess

The nation is enduring a judicial vacancy crisis that prevents our courts from providing justice to all Americans.Seventy-six federal judgeships—more than eight percent of all seats—are currently vacant. Thirty-one of these vacancies are judicial emergencies.President Obama inherited 55 vacancies when he was sworn into office. Without swift Senate action on pending nominees, he will become the first president in at least 30 years to finish his first term with more vacancies than he inherited, excluding newly created seats.Senate Republicans are perpetuating this crisis by blocking votes on unquestionably...

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One Year Later: The Consequences of Wal-Mart v. Dukes

Class-action lawsuits are a powerful tool for employees and consumers to fight for their rights against major corporations. However, thanks to the Supreme Court’s 2011 decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, which raised the threshold for the certification of class-action lawsuits, perhaps the correct way to have begun this post would be “Class-action lawsuits were a powerful tool.”The tide against class-action lawsuits was never more resounding than in Wal-Mart. One year ago, the Supreme Court reversed the lower court’s grant of class certification, after female employees of Wal-Mart tried to bring a...

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One Year Later: The Consequences of Sorrell v. IMS Health Inc.

var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-2327420-4']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })(); The Supreme Court’s First Amendment jurisprudence has taken an alarming turn under Chief...

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