Assistant state Attorney General JoAnne Kloppenburg conceded today, bringing to a close Wisconsin’s most high profile and contentious Supreme Court election (thus far).
Author Archive | Jonathan H. Adler
Should Habeas Proceedings Be Stayed If the Petitioner Is Incompetent?
Last week, in Carter v. Bradshaw, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that habeas proceedings challenging a capital sentence should be stayed until the petitioner is competent to proceed. The opinion by Judge Martin, joined by Judge Cole, acknowledged that “federal habeas petitioners facing the death penalty for state criminal convictions […]
America’s Hottest Economist
Bloomberg Businessweek profiles Tyler Cowen.
Interesting Line-Ups
Two of today’s Supreme Court decisions had very interesting line-ups. In Camreta v. Greene, which concerned the reviewability of a constitutional question in an appeal of a qualified immunity claim, Justice Kagan delivered the opinion of Court, joined by the Chief Justice and Justices Scalia, Ginsburg, and Alito. Justice Sotomayor, joined by Justice Breyer, concurred […]
AZ Immigration Law Not Preempted
This morning the Supreme Court issued its decision in Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting in which it concluded that federal law does not preempt an Arizona law that provides for the revocation or suspension of business licenses as a penalty for the knowing employment of illegal immigrants. The vote was 5-3. Chief Justice Roberts wrote […]
Wisconsin Collective Bargaining Bill Struck Down
Dane Country circuit judge Maryann Sumi struck down the controversial Wisconsin law restricting public employee bargaining rights this morning. According to Judge Sumi, the law is invalid because the Wisconsin legislature violated the state’s Open Records law when it passed the bill. Here is the opinion and coverage from the Journal Sentinel. Judge Sumi’s opinion […]
The Nuclear Option Revisited
In the wake of Goodwin Liu’s decision to withdraw his nomination to the Ninth Circuit, the Chairman of the California Democratic Party is urging Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid consider the “nuclear option.” TPM Muckraker reports: Former California State Sen. John Burton writes that if Republicans controlled the Senate — “God forbid” –they “would not […]
Goodwin Liu Withdraws Nomination
The AP is reporting that Goodwin Liu has withdrawn his nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In a letter to President Obama, Liu cited the “desperate need for judges” on the Ninth Circuit and noted his belief that “continuing my nomination will not address that need any time soon.” UPDATE: […]
Epistemic Closure in France
At the Monkey Cage, Eric Voeten reports on epistemic closure in France, particularly among French socialists. According to a poll, 57% of the French public and 70% of French Socialists believe that Dominique Strauss-Kahn (DSK) was the victim of a set-up (I couldn’t find a gender split on the numbers). The French have an admirably long history […]
Olson on Federalism and Med-Mal Reform
Over on Cato@Liberty, Walter Olson joins the discussion on federalism and medical malpractice reform started by our own Randy Barnett and continued by Ilya Somin. Olson makes the important point that federalism is not about keeping as much authority as possible in state hands, nor does a commitment to federalism require leaving state courts alone […]
Justice Department Subpoenas NYT Reporter
TPM Muckraker reports: James Risen, a reporter for the New York Times was subpoenaed in the case against Jeffrey Sterling, who is awaiting trial for allegedly leaking classified information that Risen used in his book State of War. Justice Department policy requires that such request be approved by the attorney general, meaning that Eric Holder […]
Fifth Circuit Proposes En Banc Rule Change to Avoid Another Comer v. Murphy Oil
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is proposing an amendment to Circuit Rule 41.3, governing the effect of a granting a rehearing en banc. The proposed revision provides that if a motion for rehearing en banc is granted and the court subsequently lacks a quorum to decide the case en banc, the […]
Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-WA)
Representative Dennis Kucnich (D-OH), the one-time “boy mayor” of Cleveland who led the city into default, repeated Presidential contender, and longtime advocate for a “Department of Peace,” may lose out in Ohio’s redistricting. But Dennis is not ready to give up on politics. So, as the New York Times reports, he is considering another run […]
Prosser Wins Wisconsin Recount
The Wisconsin Supreme Court election recount has concluded, and the result is not much different. Justice David Prosser defeated challenger JoAnne Kloppenburg by 7,006 votes — just over 300 votes closer than the original tabulation. Now the question is whether this result will be challenged in court.
Nabokov, Hemingway, Proust, or “24”?
Adam Liptak reports on the justices’ literary inspirations, as detailed in a series of interviews published in The Scribes Journal of Legal Writing.