Judicial Policymaking

"An excellent introduction to judicial politics as a method of analysis, the seventh edition of Judicial Process and Judicial Policymaking focuses on policy in the judicial process. Rather than limiting the text to coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court, G. Alan Tarr examines the judiciary as the third branch of government, and weaves four major premises throughout the text: 1. Courts in the United States have always played an important role in governing and their role has increased in recent decades; 2. Judicial policymaking is a distinctive activity; 3. Courts make policy in a variety of ways; and 4. Courts may be the objects of public policy, as well as creators"--

Investigates the role of federal judges in prison reform, and policy making in general.

For courses in courts and the judicial process; and law and society. The scope of its coverage, and its high academic quality, makes it attractive for graduate courses as well. Christopher P. Banks and David M. O'Brien wrote Courts and Judicial Policymaking to fill a need for a comprehensive textbook on law and judicial policymaking. The text provides a fresh perspective on the contemporary politics of law, courts, the legal profession, and judicial policymaking, often with an underlying comparative judicial process perspective. It covers four distinct areas: 1) What is law?; 2) How are courts organized and how do they work procedurally?; 3) What influences court access and, ultimately, judicial decision-making?; and, 4) How do courts make policy, and how is judicial authority constrained? It has relevant and contemporary analyses of literature from the political science and legal fields; and analyses from scholars who argue from the quantitative (attitudinal and strategic models) and the qualitative (new institutionalism) perspectives. It contains up-to-date charts and graphs on the organization of courts and trends in litigation, caseloads, and opinion writing, and it is appropriate for undergraduate and graduate classes. Feedback includes: "The book is extremely well written and organized, one of the smoothest textbooks I have read in terms of readability. The tables provided are a major selling point for the book - nicely summarize complex and often confusing materials." - Roger Handberg, University of Central Florida "The best feature of this manuscript is its thorough coverage of the subject matter as well as the in-depth analysis of specific topics and questions addressed in the boxed material and sidebars. Adding a comparative dimension by looking at the judicial systems and procedures of other countries is also quite novel." - Susan Mezey, Loyola University, Chicago

An excellent introduction to judicial politics as a method of analysis, the seventh edition of Judicial Process and Judicial Policymaking focuses on policy in the judicial process. Rather than limiting the text to coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court, G. Alan Tarr examines the judiciary as the third branch of government, and weaves four major premises throughout the text: 1) Courts in the United States have always played an important role in governing and their role has increased in recent decades; 2) Judicial policymaking is a distinctive activity; 3) Courts make policy in a variety of ways; and 4) Courts may be the objects of public policy, as well as creators. New to the Seventh Edition ■ New cases through the end of the Supreme Court’s 2018 term. ■ New case studies on the Garland-Gorsuch controversy; plea negotiation (of special relevance to the Trump administration); and the litigation over Obamacare, as well as brief coverage of the Kavanaugh confirmation. ■ Expanded coverage of the crisis in the legal profession, sentencing with attention to the rise of mass incarceration and the issue of race, constitutional interpretation and the rise of “originalism,” and same-sex marriage. ■ Updated tables and figures throughout. ■ A new online e-Resource including edited cases, a glossary of terms, and resources for further learning. This text is appropriate for all students of judicial process and policy.

Judicial Behavior and Policymaking introduces students to the politics of judging, exploring why judges make the decisions they do, who has the power to influence judicial decision-making, and what the consequences of court decisions are for policymaking. Further, this text familiarizes students with the methods that professional political scientists use to conduct research about the courts, including the quantitative analysis of data. Designed for undergraduates and graduate students alike, this accessible and engaging text provides a thorough introduction to the world of judicial politics.

To what extent do courts make social and public policy and influence policy change? This innovative text analyzes this question generally and in seven distinct policy areas that play out in both federal and state courts—tax policy, environmental policy, reproductive rights, sex equality, affirmative action, school finance, and same-sex marriage. The authors address these issues through the twin lenses of how state and federal courts must and do interact with the other branches of government and whether judicial policy-making is a form of activist judging. Each chapter uncovers the policymaking aspects of judicial process by investigating the current state of the law, the extent of court involvement in policy change, the responses of other governmental entities and outside actors, and the factors which influenced the degree of implementation and impact of the relevant court decisions. Throughout the book, Howard and Steigerwalt examine and analyze the literature on judicial policy-making as well as evaluate existing measures of judicial ideology, judicial activism, court and legal policy formation, policy change and policy impact. This unique text offers new insights and areas to research in this important field of American politics.

Standard texts on law, courts, and judicial policymaking offer a collection of facts and details about the intricacies of the American legal system and judicial decision-making, but they often ignore how law and courts fit within broader political and policy-making processes. Judicial Policymaking: Readings on Law, Politics, and Public Policy takes a different approach. It provides a broad range of materials, including scholarly writings, newspaper articles, and political cartoons, to give readers a set of tools for exploring the complex and varied role of law and courts in contemporary American society. The book explores topics such as the core promises of and limits on law and courts, American courts compared to those abroad, the possibility of replacing such a costly and unpredictable American legal system, and the question of the American legal system serving core democratic values. This new edition features updated reading selections that explore relevant and recent topics, and all readings are supplemented with brief introductory essays, review questions, and suggestions for further course materials, such as movies and documentaries, which enrich and enliven the study of law, politics, and public policymaking. Judicial Policymaking can be used as both a standalone text and an invaluable supplement to standard textbooks.

JUDICIAL PROCESS AND JUDICIAL POLICYMAKING focuses on policy in its discussion of the judicial process. The author's approach is based on four major premises: 1) that courts in the U.S. have always played an important role in governing and that their role has increased in recent decades; 2) that judicial policymaking is a distinctive activity; 3) that courts make policy in a variety of ways; and 4) that courts may be the objects of public policy, as well as creators. Rather than limit the text to coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court, G. Alan Tarr examines the judiciary as the third branch of government. Then he brings students into the debate by asking them to form their own evaluations of the organization, function, and impact of the courts on and within government.