The Dwight D. Opperman Institute of Judicial Administration at NYU School of Law Issue Number 4 / Summer 2006 Chief Justice Shepard Lectures on State Supreme Courts as Engines of Court Reform hat is the role of ever, state supreme courts have appellate courts in undertaken not only impor- the United States? tant legislative duties, but have These courts hear brought about significant pro- Wcases, write opinions, shape cedural and jurisprudential laws and develop doctrine. “For changes along the way.” state intermediate and federal Chief Justice Shepard circuit courts, this is a pretty delivered the Twelfth Annual respectable job description,” Justice William J. Brennan remarked The Honorable Ran- Jr. Lecture on State Courts dall T. Shepard, Chief Justice and Social Justice, “The New of the Supreme Court of Indi- Role of State Supreme Courts ana. “In the recent past, how- as Engines of Court Reform” on February 28, 2006. The Dwight D. Opperman Insti- In This Issue tute of Judicial Administra- tion, the Brennan Center for 2007 Brennan Lecture 2 Justice, and New York Uni- Appellate Justice Conference 3 versity School of Law proudly host the Brennan Lecture State Employment Law 4 series, which provokes reflec- Warren E. Burger Society 5 tion upon and celebration of the state judiciary—the bed- Chase’s Law, Culture rock of justice under law in and Ritual 6 the United States. Richard Chesler Elected Revesz, Dean of NYU School Presiding Partner 6 of Law, welcomed the guests, introducing Chief Judge IJA Community News 7 Judith S. Kaye of the New Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard York Court of Appeals, the Choi Directs Summer Fellows 8 inaugural Brennan Lecturer, of students learn about the tice and criminal law have IJA Summer Fellows 9 who in turn introduced Chief law. “State courts are com- been affected by state rul- Justice Shepard. mon fodder for training first ings. “Opinions continue to Board of Directors 10 Chief Justice Shepard noted year students to think like play a leading role in the writ- 2006–07 Calendar 11 that state supreme courts’ lawyers,” he said. Landmark ing and reading that occurs in decisions and reforms have decisions on civil unions the nation’s law schools.” How to Contact IJA 12 not only affected the judi- and gay marriage have come With the greater impor- ciary and the law, but increas- from the supreme courts of tance of the state supreme Membership Form 13 ingly influence scholarship Vermont and Massachusetts courts come more expansive IJA Membership 16 and academics, and have respectively, while changes functions and, naturally, an changed the way generations concerning medical malprac- increase in administrative Proof 3 • ICNLINJA05.4 • 07/06/06 • NC the poor. Since the 1980s, legal aid to the indigent has weakened due to fed- The 2007 Brennan Lecture eral budget cuts. States, however, have picked up the slack with programs such The Thirteenth Annual Brennan Lecture will be delivered by The Honorable Leah as IOLTA (Interest on Lawyers Trust Ward Sears, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia, on February 22, 2007. All Accounts), “pro se” legal services kiosks IJA members and alumni are invited to attend. and state sponsored pro bono services in order to ensure the lesser heard Previous Brennan Lecturers voices in society are not silenced. Fair treatment of minorities is 1995 Hon. Judith S. Kaye another issue being comprehensively Chief Judge, Court of Appeals of the State of New York addressed by state supreme courts. The 1996 Hon. Stewart G. Pollock federal government has its eye on cut- Associate Justice, Supreme Court of New Jersey ting the budgets of the Council on Legal Education (CLEO) and the Thurgood 1997 Hon. Stanley Mosk Marshall Program—both of which Associate Justice, Supreme Court of California increase the possibilities for low-income 1998 Hon. Ellen Ash Peters minorities to attend law school. The Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Connecticut Georgia, Kentucky and Indiana state 1999 Hon. George Bundy Smith supreme courts have started their own Associate Judge, Court of Appeals of the State of New York CLEO systems by creating clerkships for minorities, something that he says, 2000 Hon. Shirley S. Abrahamson “adds not only valuable experience, but Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Wisconsin valuable cachet to a legal career.” 2001 Hon. Christine M. Durham The vast changes induced by Associate Justice, Supreme Court of Utah state supreme courts don’t simply affect those who choose to enter the 2002 Hon. Thomas R. Phillips American legal system. Alaska has pio- Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Texas neered “therapeutic courts” for those 2003 Hon. Jeffrey L. Amestoy afflicted with drug addiction or mental Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Vermont illness. Florida has designated a pub- 2004 Hon. Margaret H. Marshall lic information executive to deal with Chief Justice, Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts laypeople such as teachers and journal- ists in an effort to disseminate more 2005 Hon. Ronald M. George accurate legal information to the pub- Chief Justice, Supreme Court of California lic. In Connecticut, through the Open 2006 Hon. Randall T. Shepard World Program, judges from Russia Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Indiana have come to learn the rule of law in an attempt to export similar state proce- dures in foreign trial courts. responsibilities. Chief Justice Shepard jury reform during the 1990s,” he said. “There is a valuable lesson embed- noted a trend in the state judicial sys- These efforts have changed summon- ded in this assessment of the new tems of California, Iowa, Kentucky ing processes, allowed juror interaction work undertaken by these institu- and Minnesota toward “unification,” and have made juries appropriately rep- tions that used to be solely appellate wherein the entire state’s court system, resentative in regard to race and ethnic- bodies,” Chief Justice Shepard said, from top to bottom, is funded by the ity. On an administrative front, Chief looking toward the future of the state state. Previously, local trial courts were Justice Shepard’s own Indiana state supreme courts’ role in American legal funded by county governments, while court system completed the Herculean society. He also seized the opportunity the appellate courts were the financial task of compiling an unduplicated regis- to return to the past, and distilled the responsibility of the state government. ter of names and addresses of over four attitude of Justice Brennan by noting Jury selection and management has also million people eligible for jury duty, that it has always been the judiciary’s been reformed by initiatives undertaken thus streamlining the summoning pro- core responsibility “to help our fellow by state supreme courts. “Two state cess in unprecedented ways. citizens in fostering a decent, safe and high courts (Arizona and New York) States have been at the forefront of prosperous society by building a system led the way out of the comfort zone of equalizing access to legal services for of justice that befits a great nation.” n IJA Co-Hosts 005 National Conference on Appellate Justice hanks to hard work by IJA and S. Abrahamson delivered the Keynote Judge Katzmann, Chief Justice Phillips, three other major organizations, Address, Judge Robert A. Katzmann and Elliot Scherker. Kathleen McCree the 2005 National Conference of the Second Circuit and Thomas R. Lewis moderated. A breakout session on Appellate Justice, held in Phillips, until recently Chief Justice for all participants followed. Session TWashington, D.C. on November 4–6 was of the Supreme Court of Texas, were Two, “The Challenge of Volume and a huge success. IJA was pleased to have presenters on a plenary panel called the Promise of Technology,” consisted served as a co-organizer and sponsor of “No Court is An Island.” Professor of a panel discussion with panelists the Conference with the National Center Chase was the introducer of Associate Circuit Judge Susan Graber of the Ninth for State Courts, the Federal Judicial Justice Stephen Breyer, who presented Circuit, Joseph W. Hatchett, formerly Center, and the American Academy of a Saturday breakfast lecture on the Chief Judge of the Eleventh Circuit, and Appellate Lawyers. The purpose of the current role of the Supreme Court. Judith McConnell, Presiding Justice of Conference was to provide an occasion Other IJA Board members enriched the California Court of Appeal. Arthur for the analysis of the state of appellate the conference discussions as partici- England, formerly Chief Justice of the justice thirty years after the now-leg- pants: Donald B. Ayer from Jones Day, Supreme Court of Florida, moderated endary National Conference of 1970. Thomas C. Leighton from Thomson and a second breakout session fol- The program was the product of close West, Carter G. Phillips from Sidley lowed. On Sunday morning the confer- to two years in planning by a Steering Austin Brown & Wood, Dean Kenneth ence turned to “Optimizing the Law- Committee of which Professor Oscar W. Starr of Pepperdine School of Law, Declaring Function.” Professor Paul G. Chase, Executive Co-Director of IJA and Judge Rya Zobel of the U.S. District Carrington moderated a panel discus- was a Co-Chair. In addition to provid- Court for the District of Massachusetts. sion among Professor Arthur Hellman, ing “sweat equity” IJA made a seed The Conference began on Friday Alan Morrison, Senior Lecturer at money donation early in the process. evening November 4 with an opening Stanford Law School, and Professor Financial support was also provided by reception attended by the roughly two- John B. Oakley. (Associate Justice several law firms, by LexisNexis and by hundred conferees and by newly-con- Samuel Alito had been scheduled to Thomson West. firmed Chief Justice John G. Roberts, participate as well but as he had by then Members of the IJA Board were Jr., who offered good wishes for success.