Checking the Courts: Law, Ideology, and Contingent Discretion(SUNY series in American Constitutionalism)

Examines and measures the extent to which statutory language affects judicial behavior.

Table of Contents:
List of Illustrations Acknowledgments 1. Introduction Anecdotal Evidence of Statutory Influence on Judges Systematic Statutory Influences on Judicial Behavior Measuring Legal Factors Organization of the Book 2. Theoretical Foundations Approaches to Interpretation and the Canons of Statutory Construction Separation of Powers Models Influence of Law and Ideology on Judicial Behavior Placing Judicial Decision Making into a Broader Theoretical Context The Model of Contingent Discretion Operationalization of Statutory Discretion Conclusions 3. U.S. Courts of Appeals Historical Development of the Federal Appellate Courts Anecdotal Evidence from Appeals Court Judges Empirical Analysis of Statutory Influence Circuit-Specific Analyses of Statutory Influence An Alternative Specification Conclusions 4. The U.S. Supreme Court Historical Development of the Supreme Court Anecdotal Evidence from Supreme Court Justices Empirical Evidence Analysis of Statutory Influence Justice-Specific Analyses of Statutory Influence An Alternative Specification Examination of Statutes Under Judicial Review Corollary Analysis of Statutes and Unanimous Decisions Conclusions 5. State Supreme Courts Influence of Law and Ideology on State Supreme Courts Anecdotal Evidence from State Court Judges Empirical Analysis of Statutory Influence Corollary Analysis of Statutes and Judicial Elections/Appointments Conclusions 6. Temporal Analysis of Supreme Court Behavior The Temporal Nature of the Law Evolution of Congressional Statutory Language Empirical Analysis of Statutory Influence versus Judicial Annotations Corollary Analysis of Statutes and Unanimous Decisions Conclusions 7. Toward a New Paradigm Summary of Empirical Evidence Theoretical and Substantive Implications Important Caveats Remaining Questions Appendix Notes References Index

About the Author :
Kirk A. Randazzo is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of South Carolina and author of Defenders of Liberty or Champions of Security? Federal Courts, the Hierarchy of Justice, and U.S. Foreign Policy, also published by SUNY Press. Richard W. Waterman is Professor of Political Science at the University of Kentucky and the author of several books, including The Changing American Presidency: New Perspectives on Presidential Power.

Review :
"Checking the Courts presents a way of conceptualizing how both the expressed preferences of lawmakers and a judge's own ideology influence judicial behavior, an idea that will interest any student of the judiciary." - Harvard Law Review "...the authors deserve much credit for the extensive and unquestionably time-consuming research reported in this book." - Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books