Courts and Congress

by Katzmann, Robert A.

• ISBN13: 9780815748663
• ISBN10: 0815748663
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1997-04-01
• Publisher: Brookings Institution Press

Summary

What role should the Senate play in the selection and confirmation of judges? What criteria are appropriate in evaluating nominees? What kinds of questions and answers are appropriate in confirmation hearings? How do judges interpret laws enacted by Congress, and what problems do they face? And what kinds of communications are proper between judges and legislators?These questions go to the heart of the relationship between the federal judiciary and Congress--a relationship that critically shapes the administration of justice. The judiciary needs an environment respectful of its mission; and the legislative branch seeks a judicial system that faithfully construes its laws and efficiently discharges justice. But the judicial-congressional relationship is hindered by an array of issues, including an ever-rising judicial caseload, federalization of the law, resource constraints, concerns about the confirmation process, increasing legislative scrutiny of judicial decisionmaking and the administration of justice, and debates about how the courts should interpret legislation.Drawing on the world of scholarship and from personal experience, Robert A. Katzmann examines governance in judicial-congressional relations. After identifying problems, he offers ways to improve understanding between the two branches.Copublished with the Governance Institute

Table of Contents

1. Courts, Congress, and the Challenges of Governance	1	(8)
Institutional Ties	2	(2)
Problems	4	(3)
Searching for Solutions	7	(2)
2. Advice and Consent	9	(37)
The Constitutional Balance between Senate and President	10	(3)
Criteria	13	(5)
How the Process Has Changed	18	(18)
Proposed "Reforms"	36	(8)
Conclusion	44	(2)
3. Approaching Statutes: Theory and Practice	46	(23)
Theories of Statutory Interpretation	49	(15)
Clarifying Legislative Meaning	64	(5)
4. An Experiment in Statutory Communication	69	(13)
The Inquiry	70	(3)
Findings	73	(3)
Mechanisms for Communication	76	(3)
Implications for Research	79	(3)
5. Building Bridges across the Communications Gulf	82	(25)
Affecting without Communicating	83	(2)
Sources of Uncertainty	85	(1)
Searching for Guidance	86	(3)
Judging the Propriety of Communications	89	(9)
Communication on Nonjudicial Subjects	98	(1)
Congressional Communication with the Judiciary	99	(1)
Conduits of Communication	100	(5)
Promoting Ongoing Exchanges	105	(1)
Opening Doors	106	(1)
6. What Lies Ahead	107	(8)
Sources of the Strain	107	(2)
Judicial Responses	109	(3)
Shared Responsibility	112	(1)
"Still a Good Coat"	113	(2)
Notes	115	(40)
Index	155