Join IJPM and the College of Law for the opportunity to hear from defense attorney, Frank Armani, and former prosecutor, Judge Norman Mordue for a discussion on ethics and professional responsibility in the face of knowledge of murder victims buried, but unfound by law enforcement.  For more details see the related event post.

In “Judicial Ethics: Appearances Still Matter” IJPM Director, Keith Bybee discusses whether the appearance of impartiality is critical for judges to retain legitimacy and sustain public support, ultimately asking “Does this robe make me look impartial?”

Keith Bybee spoke with Brian Lehrer about his newly published book, All Judges Are Political: Except When They Are Not.  The interview was broadcast on WCNY and can be accessed by clicking here.

Keith Bybee’s new book, All Judges Are Political – Except When They Are Not was recently featured on by the Stanford University Press, the book is also available for purchase on the site.

In “Justice by the Numbers,” Amy Bach discusses the inequities and injustices faced by thousands of individuals in America’s courts.  Bach argues that creating a “justice index” to show how the key aspects of America’s courts are or are not working.

IJPM Director Keith Bybee discusses the effect of the one-week delay in the confirmation process for Supreme Court nominee, Elena Kagan, and how it will continue to allow the competing notions of judicial impartiality and commitment to particular political views to battle it out for priority in the confirmation process.

In the midst of the ongoing confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan, Bybee’s piece is a timely commentary on the conflicting demands for judicial impartiality and political ideology.

We live in an age where one person’s judicial “activist” legislating from the bench is another’s impartial arbiter fairly interpreting the law. After the Supreme Court ended the 2000 Presidential election with its decision in Bush v. Gore, many critics claimed that the justices had simply voted their political preferences. But Justice Clarence Thomas, among many others, disagreed and insisted that the Court had acted according to legal principle, stating: “I plead with you, that, whatever you do, don’t try to apply the rules of the political world to this institution; they do not apply.” The legitimacy of our courts rests on their capacity to give broadly acceptable answers to controversial questions. Yet Americans are divided in their beliefs about whether our courts operate on unbiased legal principle or political interest. Comparing law to the practice of common courtesy, Keith Bybee explains how our courts not only survive under these suspicions of hypocrisy, but actually depend on them. Coming in September 2010, All Judges Are Political–Except When They Are Not: Acceptable Hypocrisies and the Rule of Law, will be available from Stanford University Press.

The third annual Law, Politics, and the Media lecture series will begin on February 15th and will run on most Mondays until the end of April. All lectures are open to the public and will begin promptly at 3:50 p.m. in Room 204 at the College of Law. Please check the course page for the syllabus, specific dates, the list of speakers and titles for the lectures. We hope to see you there.

On October 30th, Professor Keith Bybee was recognized as the first Judiciary Studies Professor in the newly created Paul E. and The Hon. Joanne F. Alper ’72 Judiciary Studies Professorship at Syracuse University College of Law.  The professorship was created through the leadership and financial commitment of Paul E. and the Hon. Joanne F. Alper and it will fund Bybee’s scholarly work, research, and academic initiatives relating to judicial legitimacy, court independence and the intersections of law, politics, and the media.  Judge Alper has been an active supporter and proponent of IJPM since it’s inception.