Plus: Heated debate over Gov. Hochul’s New York chief judge nominee
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SCOTUS Sets Record for Slowest Pace of Decisions
The Supreme Court has not yet released any opinions in cases argued in the 2022 term, setting a record for the longest time between the first argument in a term and the first decision in an argued case in the Court’s history, according to Empirical SCOTUS
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In addition to moving slowly this term to release decisions in argued cases, the Court is hearing fewer cases overall. So far this year, there are only 52 cases on the Court’s merits docket, which could set another record low. In the 2019–2020 term, the Court released only 53 decisions
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, the lowest
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number of overall decisions in one term since 1862, when the Civil War impacted the Court’s operations. That pattern is on track to continue.
This fall, the Court heard cases on several high-profile topics, including affirmative action, voting rights, religious freedom and antidiscrimination, and environmental regulations. Jaime Santos, a partner at Goodwin’s Supreme Court and Appellate Litigation practice, speculated
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that the lack of early decisions may be because there were not “many easy cases in the first or second sittings that would reliably be expected to lead to a short, unanimous opinion released quickly.”
The justices returned to the bench on January 9, continuing the 2022-2023 term.
State Senators, Advocates Debate Over New York Chief Judge Nominee
On December 22, Gov. Kathy Hochul nominated
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Appellate Division, Second Department Presiding Justice Hector LaSalle to serve as the next chief judge of New York’s highest court, writing "Judge LaSalle has a sterling reputation as a consensus-builder, and I know he can unite the court in service of justice.”
Hochul’s choice of LaSalle has been met with both support and fierce opposition. On December 28, almost two dozen former judges signed a letter in support
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of his nomination. A group of prominent Latino leaders also launched
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a “Latinos for LaSalle” campaign to back the nominee, who would be the first Latino chief judge in the state’s history.
However, LaSalle’s judicial record, particularly in cases related to abortion
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, the rights of criminal defendants
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, and labor unions
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, has also prompted significant opposition
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from several Democratic state senators, labor leaders, and reproductive rights groups.
To date, 14 Democratic senators have announced
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they would oppose him, and reports suggest several others have said the same privately. As such, if LaSalle’s nomination is brought to the floor, he would need Republican votes to be confirmed.
The New York Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing
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to consider LaSalle’s nomination next Wednesday, January 18, at 10 a.m.
Supreme Court Justice Apologizes for Pushing Formerly Incarcerated Law Clerk to Resign
Pete Martel, a law clerk to newly appointed Michigan Supreme Court Justice Kyra Harris Bolden, resigned last week after facing criticism from Justice Richard Bernstein because of a past conviction. Martel, 48, served 14 years in prison after robbing a store and shooting at police officers when he was 19 years old. He became a lawyer after his release in 2008.
Bolden and Bernstein campaigned together
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this past fall as the two Democratic nominees for the Michigan Supreme Court, but Bernstein initially said
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he was “completely disgusted” by Martel’s hiring, adding, “There are certain jobs you should never be allowed to have after you shoot at a police officer, and one of them is clerking for the highest court in the state.” Bernstein said last week that he was “no longer talking to” Bolden because they “don’t share the same values.”
In a radio interview last week, Bolden commented, “I don’t think you should be held to crimes for the rest of your life, especially crimes that were committed 30 years ago.”
Bernstein has since issued a statement
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apologizing to Bolden and Martel and committing to working together with Bolden to achieve their “many shared values.”
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