Director of the Judiciary Program at the Brennan Center for Justice and the Kohlberg Center on the U.S. Supreme Court. Editor-in-chief of State Court Report. All opinions are my own.
Alicia Bannon
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State courts are hearing a bunch of interesting oral arguments this month, covering everything from firearm laws, to cities' power to regulate tobacco, to the rights of transgender prisoners. Check out this round-up by @skess108.bsky.social. statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...
This is a really nice piece, as is the underlying law review article. I highly recommend it. I agree that state constitutions can play an important role in protecting the public interest from private capture. There remain hard questions about the role of the courts here, even at the state level.
Supreme Court term limits are consistent with judicial independence. Check out this thoughtful piece by @cato.org's @thomasberry.bsky.social in the Benchmark, a project of the Brennan Center's Kohlberg Center on the Supreme Court. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...
Alicia Bannon
State courts are increasingly at the center of legal and political fights over election districts. I covered recent developments in state redistricting litigation in VA, MO, FL, TN & LA. Look for more to come in the aftermath of SCOTUS's Callais ruling.
statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...
We don't pay enough attention to state supreme courts' supervisory powers over how courts operate. I'm excited to have this explainer by @adamsopko.bsky.social, which shows how these powers have been used to expand due process, enhance tenant protections & more. statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...
The framework that Michael articulates here has changed the way that I look at state court decisions and will be seen, I think, as one of the most important contributions to state constitutional scholarship.
@aliciabannon.bsky.social on the frenzy of redistricting litigation, including the Florida case:
You can read more commentary and analysis on Supreme Court reform and how the Court is functioning as an institution at the Benchmark, a project of the Brennan Center's Kohlberg Center on the Supreme Court. www.brennancenter.org/benchmark
Jesse Wegman spotlights two recent cases to show how the Supreme Court likes expanding executive power in the service of deregulation, but not when it might injure corporate America. bit.ly/4fcjO0w
Alicia Bannon
Alicia Bannon
Sam Bagenstos
Issues on the dockets include crossover voting, a gun ban for young adults, transgender prisoners, and court reporter shortages.
Predictable turnover on the high court would improve its stability and accountability, and the justices would still be safe from political retaliation.
www.brennancenter.org
High courts’ authority to make rules on topics both mundane and profound can have substantial implications for civil rights and liberties.
Yesterday a Florida trial court refused to block the state’s new congressional map, despite a state constitutional provision barring partisan gerrymandering. Read @erings.bsky.social’s analysis of the ruling — and how a series of SCOTUS rulings got us here.
statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...
Alicia Bannon
A short piece I wrote for @statecourtreport.org on the problems "state capture" poses for state and local government, and how state constitutions might be used to prevent them.
statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...
Based on an article first published with @cardozolaw.bsky.social (link below).
Trump the businessman said, “You’re fired”; Trump the president is fighting in court for the right to say those words whenever he wants.
My essay on the many ways that state courts interpret state constitutions in lockstep with federal doctrine is now live on the @statecourtreport.org!
statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...
State constitutions offer powerful tools for combatting control of state and local institutions by private interests.
Voting rights groups claim the new map, expected to result in four additional Republican seats, violates the Florida Constitution’s ban on partisan gerrymandering.
It's been a big day for news about redistricting and the fate of various maps for House seats, with news out of Alabama, South Carolina, and most recently, Florida. Here's a rundown:
The practice of interpreting state constitutions identically to their federal counterpart is often criticized in blanket terms. But the ways state courts lockstep vary widely.
