United States Courts Policy

Courts, Politics, and the Judicial Process

COURTS AS POLICYMAKERS

New Deal Era

Controversy surrounded the Supreme Court during the New Deal era, as Congress passed numerous laws designed to end the Depression and the conservative court ruled these laws unconstitutional. In response, Franklin Roosevelt proposed what opponents termed a “court-packing plan” to increase the number of justices, allowing Roosevelt to appoint justices supportive of New Deal legislation. Although Congress did not pass Roosevelt’s plan to expand the court, two justices, Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes and Associate Justice Owen Roberts, began voting in favor of New Deal legislation (sometimes referred to as “the switch in time to save nine.”)

The Warren Court (1953-1969)

Often termed “the most liberal court ever,” the Warren Court under Chief Justice Earl Warren was especially active in the area of civil rights and civil liberties. This court heard Brown v. Board of Education (1954), declaring segregation in public schools unconstitutional. The Warren Court also expanded the rights of criminal defendants in Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) and Miranda v. Arizona (1966).

The Burger Court (1969-1986)

Richard Nixon’s appointment of Warren Burger as chief justice returned the Supreme Court to a more conservative ideology with regard to narrowing the rights of defendants. The Burger Court permitted abortions in Roe v. Wade (1973) and ruled that Nixon did not have executive privilege over information in a criminal proceeding in U.S. v. Nixon (1974). In Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978), the Court ruled against the use of quotas in the admissions process. At the same time, the Court upheld the legality of affirmative action.

The Rehnquist and Roberts Courts (1986-)

The conservative court under Chief Justice William Rehnquist continued to limit, but not reverse, decisions of the earlier more liberal courts in the areas of defendants’ rights, abortion (Planned Parenthood v. Casey, 1992), and affirmative action.

The court of Chief Justice John Roberts (2005-) continued the conservative ideology of the Rehnquist Court. In 2007 the Roberts Court upheld the federal Partial-Birth Abortion Act of 2003.

Legal Materials

For a good introduction to the U.S. court system, see a A Journalist’s Guide to the Federal Courts. For more information, see the Federal Courts in America section of the Federal Judiciary web site.

Links to Federal Court web sites are available through FindLaw and the Federal Judiciary’s Court Locator.

Resources

See Also

Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts
Court Clerks / Court Houses
Docket Sheets
Federal Court Rules
Judges
Judicial Districts
Jury Instructions
United States Supreme Court
Unreported Decisions

Further Reading

• Courts, Politics, and the Judicial Process
• Information about United States Courts in the Gale Encyclopedia of American Law.