[Eugene Volokh, May 26, 2006 at 11:39am] Trackbacks
Judge Brett Kavanaugh:

Congratulations to Brett Kavanaugh, whose appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has just been confirmed by the Senate. Brett is a very smart and thoughtful guy, and will make a first-rate judge. He's also, I'm delighted to say, a Kozinski clerk (he clerked the year before me).

DJ (mail):
I watched his confirmation hearing on C-SPAN. Brett seems awight.

Question: With the retirements of Silberman and Williams, who the big-time conservative feeder judges on the DC Circuit? (By "feeder", I mean the ones who are a direct line to Thomas's or Scalia's chambers.) Will Kavanaugh take over that roll?
5.26.2006 1:05pm
therut:
I hope he is as strong of a supporter of the 2nd amendment as his mentor. I've got the quote of Kozinski in my wall mural of 2nd amendment at my hunting cabin.
5.26.2006 1:32pm
Kate1999 (mail):
Yeah, like Second Amendment issues come up a lot on the DC Circuit's docket.
5.26.2006 2:38pm
Fearmonger (mail):
Kate:

Isn't a constitutional challenge to the D.C. gun ban possible? Wouldn't it then be appealed to the D.C. Circuit? What am I missing?
5.26.2006 4:42pm
Alan Gura:
I represent the appellants in Parker v. D.C., D.C. Circuit No. 04-7041, a Second Amendment challenge to the various D.C. gun bans.

Our brief is due and will be filed June 1. We expect the case will be argued sometime in the fall.

You can follow the case here:
http://www.gurapossessky.com/parker.htm
5.26.2006 5:08pm
Todd Henderson (mail):
I worked closely with Brett in the appellate litigation group at Kirkland &Ellis (DC). He is a fantastically talented lawyer, a great colleague, and a patriotic American. I predict great things from the pen of Judge Kavanaugh.
5.27.2006 11:04am
Rex:
In what way does being a "patriotic American" correlate with one's greatness as a judge?
5.27.2006 12:31pm
Christopher Cooke:
I hope Kavanaugh proves to be another John Roberts, a principled conservative judge. As a lawyer, all I ask is for a fair hearing by an intelligent judge who hasn't made up his or her mind beforehand. With Roberts, I sensed you get that type of hearing, but with others, I am not too sure.
5.27.2006 2:24pm
Eugene Volokh (www):
A judge is a public servant. He's expected to work hard to serve the public, to forgo a considerable amount of money he could earn in the public sector, and sometimes (not as often as some say, and not as rarely as others say) make discretionary decisions of great importance to his nation, in contexts where the law is unclear. If you love something -- your country, your family, your school, your club -- you're more likely to word hard on its behalf. Patriotism, which is to say love of country, is far from the most important trait of a judge; but it surely does help one make the sacrifices that the job demands.
5.27.2006 2:54pm
Todd Henderson (mail):
Professor Volokh is right, but I think understating the importance of love of country. What I mean when I describe Brett this way is that he believes in the American ideal. He believes there is something special about this country that is worth fighting for and preserving. He believes in the things, like freedom and liberty, that make this country great. While I agree that patriotism is not a sufficient condition to be a great judge, I do believe it is a necessary one. All the great judges in our history were patriots.
5.27.2006 4:49pm
Cyn23 (mail):
So the delay and opposition was basically empty?
5.27.2006 8:59pm