Are Federal Judges Political? Views from the Academy, the Bench, and the Press

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March 27, 2007

Although the United States Supreme Court attracts the lion’s share of public attention and political criticism, the fact is that only a tiny fraction of federal cases make it onto the high court’s docket each year. On a large number of pressing disputes, it is the lower federal courts that have the final word. What role does politics play in determining who sits on the lower federal courts and how decisions on these courts are made? Should we be more concerned about the partisan preferences that shape those legal issues the U.S. Supreme Court does not consider?

Judge Carolyn Dineen King, first female Chief Judge of the U. S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit; Professor Nancy Scherer of Wellesley College, author of Scoring Points: Politicians, Political Activists and the Lower Federal Court Appointment Process; and Charlotte Grimes, Knight Chair at S.I Newhouse School of Public Communications joined us for a discussion that was moderated by Keith J. Bybee. This event was co-sponsored by Syracuse University’s College of Law.

EVENT PARTICIPANTS

Carolyn Dineen King
Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

Nancy Scherer
Professor, Wellesley College

Charlotte Grimes
Knight Chair for Political Reporting, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications