Legal interpretation begins with a legal text. At least in theory it does. While in practice this is not always the case, textualism has become synonymous with conservatism in recent Court eras primarily due to Justice Scalia’s reliance on the language of statutory texts. In practice, a textualist approach is not limited by judicial ideology and…
Tag: Michael Carvin
Comparing Candidates for the Next United States Solicitor General
Eleven possibilities for the next Solicitor General of the United States. There are in fact many more possible candidates although the eleven names produced in two articles – one by Tony Mauro of the National Law Journal and another by David Lat, managing editor of Above the Law provide an ample source of talented lawyers…
Oral Arguments OT 2015: A Look Back
On Wednesday April 29th the Supreme Court Justices heard their final oral argument of the Term with McDonnell v. United States. The Justices heard a total of 69 arguments from October 2015 through April 2016 (not accounting separately for consolidated dockets; links to all of the transcripts, audio, and information about all of the cases…
The Regulars: Supreme Court Litigation 2015-2016
Since 2001 the Supreme Court has written full opinions in 67-75 orally argued cases per Term. We are certain not to see more than 75 this Term and nowhere near the 151 such cases in the 1982 and 1983 Terms, which were high points for the second half of the 20th century. With fewer cases,…
Cert Winners 2014: Attorneys and Firms
Thinking of submitting a case to the Supreme Court? Most likely not. If so, be prepared to have your case rejected. The Supreme Court is extremely selective about the cases it hears typically only taking cases with circuit splits, of great importance, and with issues that have sufficiently percolated through the lower courts. The majority…
Top Briefs in Friedrichs v. CA Teachers Assn.
(image from Dover Teachers’ Union) With 48 amicus curiae briefs filed at the merits phase and a total of 57 amicus briefs filed throughout the case, Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association (No. 14-915) has drawn much interest both from the public and from the policy community. It also provides the fodder I was looking for…
Empirical SCOTUS 