Questions tagged [judiciary]
Questions about those parts of governments which interpret and apply the law. Please use with an appropriate country-tag.
125
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31
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7answers
8k views
Why are legal decisions in the US so politicized?
(Not sure if this should be on the Law.SE. I'm guessing the answer is more political than legal, hence I'm asking it here.)
Example
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — A difficult political atmosphere for ...
-2
votes
4answers
342 views
What power do politicians have in court cases?
What power do politicians have when it comes to court cases? For example, the Kyle Rittenhouse case is about to end, and some people believe that the judge in the case is biased against the ...
8
votes
3answers
311 views
How does the Polish court's rejection of EU law supremacy differ from Germany's seemingly similar action?
I'm not sure if this a 100% correct summary of what happened in Germany last year, but:
While the German Federal Constitutional Court has long reserved the power to reject EU actions that manifestly ...
21
votes
1answer
5k views
How does Germany regularly elect judges onto Federal Constitutional Court despite needing two-thirds majority vote?
In Germany, the judges on Federal Constitutional Court are elected by the federal parliament with two-thirds majority vote.
Throughout its history, the parliament was able to elect new judges without ...
-6
votes
2answers
231 views
Isn't there a conflict of interest when the president appoints a (former) judge as the attorney general?
Isn't Merrick Garland too conflicted to be Attorney General because he is a former Chief Judge on the US Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit?
After his Chief Judgeship, Garland was nominated by and ...
30
votes
6answers
5k views
Why is avoidance of judicial review of the Texas abortion law and other future US state laws so concerning to the US department of justice?
From CNN's video coverage of US Attorney General Merrick Garland announcement of its lawsuit against the state of Texas:
Q: ...several GOP lawmakers who said that they will follow Texas’ lead, and I ...
3
votes
1answer
257 views
Are there constitutional arguments for preventing/avoiding judicial review of state law in some scenarios? Are there any historical examples of this?
From CNN's video coverage of US Attorney General Merrick Garland announcement of its lawsuit against the state of Texas:
Q: ...several GOP lawmakers who said that they will follow Texas’ lead, and I ...
28
votes
2answers
1k views
What arguments have been made to support the Texas abortion law's private enforcement provisions, beyond evading review?
Texas Senate Bill 8, which practically bars abortions in the state, has an unusual* provision whereby civil claims against abortion providers can be asserted by private plaintiffs not involved in or ...
0
votes
1answer
148 views
What is the difference between a recusal and abstaining? [closed]
Are these words synonyms or do they mean different things? A member of congress abstains from voting, while a judge recuses himself from a case. Is there a meaningful difference between the two out of ...
7
votes
5answers
5k views
Is there anything judicial that can prevent Trump from taking part in the 2024 elections?
It seems that Donald Trump is already preparing for his 2024 campaign - especially after the Republican CPAC in Iowa.
Is there anything judicial that could prevent him from running in the 2024 race?
3
votes
1answer
161 views
Have the salaries or benefits of members of the Constitutional Court ever been decreased in an European country?
Background
I have watched an interview with an economic analyst arguing that Romania is in a strange situation ("conflict of interest") because the Constitutional Court members are able to ...
2
votes
2answers
159 views
What can individual state governments do to combat court case backlogs?
Many people say that states have a problem administering justice due to a large and growing number of cases that have yet to be tried.
Increasing funding to the state's courts system seems like an ...
5
votes
1answer
326 views
Why are there juries in the patent litigation cases in the U.S.?
Why are there juries in the patent litigation cases in the U.S.? There was a jury in the Samsung v Apple case, and I recall that none of the jury had an expertise in patent law. Is there a political ...
8
votes
1answer
557 views
How often does the federal government sue states?
The Justice Department recently filed a lawsuit against the State of Georgia over voting restrictions passed by the Georgia legislature.
How often does the federal government file lawsuits against ...
12
votes
1answer
937 views
In what way(s) was US Judge Royce Lamberth a "pain in the butt" to the Clinton Administration?
After 06:27 in the CNN video Rudy Giuliani suspended from practicing law in New York state commentator Paul Kane, Senior Congressional Correspondent for The Washington Post said (my transcription):
...
11
votes
1answer
1k views
Is availability of jurors a limiting factor in the justice system?
It is being reported today that the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, Lord Burnett of Maldon is calling for smaller juries to clear the backlog of court cases: Telegraph (paywalled) Text ...
3
votes
1answer
181 views
Does the injunction blocking the Biden administration's suspension of new oil and gas leases only affect the 13 states that filed suit?
A federal judge in Louisiana ruled on June 15th that President Biden cannot pause new leases for drilling on public lands. It was a suit filed by 12 states and Louisiana. According to the NYT:
Judge ...
4
votes
1answer
280 views
Has a U.S. president (or other politician) commenting on a criminal case ever actually led to a major setback for the prosecution?
We often hear politicians-- and U.S. presidents especially-- being criticized for weighing in on criminal cases on the grounds that their comments could prejudice a jury. Most recently Joe Biden and ...
3
votes
0answers
81 views
Studies on the application of "Red Flag Laws" in the US
I'm looking for objective studies describing how red flag gun laws involving Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPOs) are being used in those U.S. states that have implemented them. I'd like to see ...
2
votes
1answer
227 views
Is it legal to talk about former Chief Justice of India (CJI) in the Parliament of India?
On 8 February 2021, Mahua Moitra said the following in her speech in Lok Sabha during the discussion on motion of thanks on the President's address:
The sacred cow that was the judiciary is no longer ...
5
votes
1answer
192 views
What did the Framers of the Constitution have to say about court packing?
Trump has repeatedly said that Biden wants to pack the courts, this likely wouldn’t work because of the Senate filibuster. Although hard, if one party were able to obtain 60 seats in the Senate, ...
2
votes
0answers
45 views
Do elected attorneys general and prosecutors in the U.S. sue companies more frequently when re-elections are upcoming?
I get the sense that this is true from anecdotal examples, as attorneys general (especially those with higher political ambitions) try to win future votes by being “tough on corporations”.
But I don’t ...
5
votes
1answer
253 views
How immune are Supreme Court justices or other high ranking judicial officials from punishment for crimes committed during their official duties?
I am aware that members of Congress have some immunities and so do the President and Vice President, but what about Supreme Court justices or federal prosecutors for example?
1
vote
1answer
92 views
On what basis was the 2011 HHS override of and FDA decision overruled by a federal judge?
A Politico article on the FDA and its questionable legal independence (from the executive) mentions that:
in 2011, the diminished autonomy of the FDA was made visibly apparent by a clash within the ...
6
votes
1answer
247 views
Can a Supreme Court justice be nominated and confirmed under two different presidents?
For example, if President Trump nominated a justice on his last day in office, could that person then be confirmed by the Senate during a Biden administration?
3
votes
1answer
186 views
What is going on with the constitutional court in Ukraine?
Recently, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky submitted a bill to the Verkhovna Rada (Supreme Council of Ukraine) proposing to terminate the powers of all Constitutional Court judges.
It's a bit of ...
2
votes
2answers
486 views
If (Supreme Court) judges are supposedly impartial how are they so readily identified to parties?
Are they identified with Republican or Democratic parties depending on their leanings on specific, key issues? Or is there a more general cause, like broadly taking more literal interpretation of the ...
27
votes
6answers
8k views
How could the US Congress reduce the size of the US Supreme Court?
There are a number of questions regarding the motivations and effects of "packing" the supreme court in the United States of America by adding more justices of the appointer's preference. It ...
1
vote
0answers
31 views
What organizations made more than 100 endorsements in US state and local judicial races between 2009 and 2018?
Other than bar associations and trade associations, what organizations made more than 100 endorsements in US state and local judicial races between 2009 and 2018?
2
votes
1answer
80 views
Free websites to help me find influential or contentious local court cases?
I am looking for free websites that contain (potentially partial) catalogs of state and local court cases in the United States, and allows me to filter and/or sort by any of the following:
The vote ...
28
votes
5answers
8k views
Why is changing the size of the Supreme Court considered dangerous today, when it has been done in the past?
Recently, there has been a lot of talk about "court packing", the process of increasing the size of the Supreme Court, thereby creating openings to be filled with new justices. A common ...
1
vote
0answers
102 views
Could Ted Cruz (or another sitting senator) be appointed to be a SCOTUS justice? [duplicate]
Donald Trump made a list of possible US Supreme Court appointments if a vacancy shows up while he's in office. Two of these intrigued me: Tom Cotton and Ted Cruz.
I know this might not matter in ...
3
votes
1answer
234 views
What exactly is the "Trout" in this D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals opinion? Does it suggest a political motive of a judge?
Edited to reflect why I feel this question is on-topic here.
The following is excerpted from Politico's Appeals court deals setback to Flynn’s attempt to end DOJ case against him:
The D.C. Circuit ...
6
votes
2answers
380 views
Has there been a movement to make US judicial appointments apolitical?
The judicial system in India and some other countries is independent of politics in the sense that it is not the party in power that influences who will be a Supreme Court judge, but judges among ...
2
votes
1answer
118 views
Why is the Michigan Supreme Court's refusal to hear a case a bar to publishing the Court of Appeals' decision?
MCR 7.215(D)(4) says that
The Court of Appeals shall not direct publication if the Supreme Court has denied an application for leave to appeal under MCR 7.305.
What is the purpose of this rule?
-2
votes
1answer
98 views
Rushed in judicial appointments in US courts? [duplicate]
Let's say the GOP loses the Senate majority and the presidency. But, the Republican leadership understands the fact that there are more than 45 days left until they lose Congress officially in the ...
5
votes
2answers
467 views
How can an UK judge rule over Dubai's Chief of State?
As I understand it, Princess Haya is moving legal action in the UK against her husband, the vice-president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
As he is a chief of ...
1
vote
0answers
222 views
How often does the ECtHR Grand Chamber reverse judgements by its lower chamber?
In the recent N.D. & N.T. vs Spain 2020 case, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) basically reversed a 2017 decision of the ECtHR's (lower) chamber.
the [Grand Chamber ...
10
votes
1answer
232 views
Is the blocking of Heathrow's third runway the first time a national government has been held to an international climate agreement by the judiciary?
On the 27th of February, the UK Court of Appeal ruled that the government's decision to allow the expansion of Heathrow Airport was unlawful because the government had not taken its commitments made ...
2
votes
0answers
73 views
Test or drill to verify the functioning of a judicial system by ordinary people [closed]
Is there any mechanism in any judicial system to test its efficiency by designing a fake or test crime scheme to verify the functionality of the judiciary? For example, is there a method for a ...
-3
votes
1answer
120 views
How binding is a sentencing recommendation by the Department of Justice? [closed]
Regarding the sentencing of Roger Stone, the original recommendation, which had been made according to official guidelines, was for a sentence of 7-9 years in prison.
Then it was changed, and ...
5
votes
1answer
334 views
Do Polish citizens support law that allows judges to be disciplined for criticizing the system?
Polish President Duda has adopted on October, 2nd 2020 a divisive law that allows judges to be disciplined for criticizing the system. The legislation, which has drawn condemnation from the European ...
13
votes
1answer
1k views
Who has standing to sue for Emoluments violations?
Almost a week ago, the DC Court of Appeals threw out a lawsuit by two hundred out of five hundred thirty-eight congresspeople against the President, claiming that he has violated the Emoluments clause ...
21
votes
4answers
7k views
Is the number of federal judges appointed by Trump unusual?
Among the achievements of President Trump quoted by supporters and the White House itself is a drive to appoint federal judges. His recent letter to the Speaker of the House gives the number of 170 ...
4
votes
1answer
693 views
Can John Roberts rule on whether witnesses have to testify in the impeachment inquiry?
It was ruled today that Don McGahn, the former White House counsel, needs to testify in the impeachment inquiry. Like most things, I am guessing that this will probably be appealed, and could end up ...
2
votes
1answer
470 views
Can a President nominate a US Supreme Court Justice in anticipation of a sitting Justice's demise?
Say a Justice is barely hanging on to her life. Can a president nominate and the Senate confirm a Justice in anticipation of their death? Do they have to wait until the person dies? Can't it be a ...
29
votes
2answers
5k views
What does it mean that North Carolina's maps were thrown out but new ones weren't ordered drawn?
This article from NBC says this (emphasis mine):
A three-judge panel of state judges issued an order Monday barring state officials from using the current map for the coming elections, including ...
2
votes
1answer
145 views
Does any other Latin American country have a justice system in which the security forces can only be prosecuted by military courts?
According to a 2016 Amnesty article, the Chile justice system encourages brutality from the security forces because
Chile’s military courts, which deal with cases of human rights violations committed ...
5
votes
1answer
469 views
Has the UK Parliament been successfully sued for passing or doing something deemed unconstitutional?
According to some "extrajudicial" comments by justices in R (Jackson) v Attorney General
, e.g.:
Lord Hope followed on from Lord Steyn
Parliamentary sovereignty is no longer, if it ever ...
4
votes
3answers
289 views
Conservatism and Executive Power
The Economist cites the philosopher and political theorist Michael Oakeshott to describe conservatism as "To be conservative... is to prefer the familiar to the unknown, to prefer the tried to the ...
