Something fun and lighthearted to talk about around the Thanksgiving table tomorrow: are SCOTUS justices racist? Here's @lizmaltby.bsky.social and my perspective:

Supreme Court justices use racial stereotypes when deciding cases find Elizabeth Maltby of @unlv.edu and @abbymatthews.bsky.social of @sunyofficial.bsky.social blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/20...

IMPORTANT EXTENSION! The SPSA Neal Tate Best Paper Committee is extending the deadline to Nov 3, 5:00 pm EST. The 2026 Neal Award is given to the author(s) of the Best Paper on Judicial Politics presented at the 2025 SPSA Annual Meeting. Email papers to [email protected].

The New York Times publishes a handy guide to which federal forces are terrorizing us at any moment. This is America, 2025.

wrote about last week's super interesting tribal sovereignty decision in Washington Supreme Court one justice wrote a standalone concurrence basically saying 'the court applied the law correctly, but also the law is terrible and it's our responsibility to say so' ballsandstrikes.org/legal-cultur...

NEW: Judge William Young's ruling against Rubio and Noem is a lesson for all in the Trump era. Young lays bare the unconstitutionality of the Trump administration's student deportation efforts — and issues a challenge to America. Today, at Law Dork:

Publish or perish…but what exactly does it take to earn tenure in Law & Courts? 📈👩🏽‍⚖️ Our new article tracks 40+ years of tenure portfolios—spoiler: expectations are rising, collaborations are up, but inequities remain. 👇 @alyxmark.bsky.social @melineberger.bsky.social doi.org/10.1017/jlc....

We're back, y'all! Hitting that #TenureTrackHustle hard, but finding time to support our fellow #JudicialWomen nonetheless! LET'S GO!!!!!!!!! (PS - follow @lawcourtsapsa.bsky.social for all your official APSA Law and Courts content) (PPS - We are not judges, please don't tag us to yell at them!)

I know it may be shocking, but what if some of the Supreme Court justices were racist? Our findings show that litigant race, crime type, and justice ideology jointly shape judicial votes. Out now at JREP with Liz Maltby. cup.org/46JFvjZ #polisky #LawSky

@abbymatthews.bsky.social & Rachael Hinkle's analysis of judicial citations demonstrates that diversity in race, gender, *and* partisanship plays a critical role in the evolution of legal doctrine, with judges sharing all 3 salient traits experiencing a 25% increase in citation probability.

This will have to count as my Supreme Court term review. I make that point that there's no point in reviewing what the Supreme Court has done because the rule of law is dead in this country anyway. My latest in @thenation.com

Melissa Hortman, who was assassinated last night, was the Speaker of the Minnesota House in the 2023-2024 session, when Democrats ran the state government. That means she had a leading role in shepherding the many landmark reforms that Dems adopted in that period—an important legacy. Brief 🧵.

Thinking about devastating cuts to NSF: US gov-funded science has been the engine upon which most of the tech wealth was generated. But the oligarchs (currently hoarding much of that $) think it’s their own brilliance & not the accident of standing close to the scientific engine that made them rich.

Does a litigant’s race or gender influence public support for Supreme Court decisions? Read more: www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/... #JOP #SupremeCourt #PublicOpinion #PoliticalPerceptions Authors: @jamilscott.bsky.social @elizabethlane.bsky.social @jessicaann87.bsky.social

It's student evaluations time. As we ponder them, let's ponder how to fix them. abovethelaw.com/2018/10/weap...

Michigan has a new Supreme Court Justice, as of today. Governor Whitmer appointed Noah Hood, a lower court judge, to the seat of a retiring Republican justice. This means Democratic or Democratic-nominated justices now have a majority of 6-1 on this court. Brief thread:

I am always proud of my former graduate students. Today, @rachaelhouston.bsky.social just published this excellent commentary on the @lseusablog.bsky.social. Nice job my friend! @umnpolisci.bsky.social @judicialwomen.bsky.social @apsa.bsky.social

Friendly reminder that it’s award season! Nominations for Law and Courts section awards are due 3/1! 🏆 Nominate yourself! Nominate good work! Nominate good people! In the famous words of Michael Scott via Wayne Gretzky - "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." Take the shot!

🚨New paper alert from Francesca Parente: "The Price of Justice: Compliance and Damages Awarded by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights," in Journal of Law & Courts doi.org/10.1017/jlc.... We saw this in writing group and it's 🔥. #ReadItCiteItSyllabusIt #polisky

📚📚New book by @cbambrick.bsky.social "Constitutionalizing the Private Sphere: A Comparative Inquiry" with @cambridgeup.bsky.social. The book examines when courts understand private actors, such as private individuals, businesses, schools, and hospitals, to be responsible for constitutional rights.

Hot off the presses! The new issue of American Politics Research features an article by @jessicaann87.bsky.social and Miles Armaly! Curious about how judicial friendship affects people's perceptions of the Supreme Court? Keep reading! (it's open access!) t.co/RijpfWaXEe #ReadItCiteItSyllabusIt

📚 Congratulations to @alyxmark.bsky.social for her new book about state courts! 🎊 In Courts Unmasked (what a great title!), she examines state courts' responses to the pandemic but she also speaks to broader questions of access to justice and access to courts. Learn more below & get your copy today.

It's that time yet again! Join our writing groups! If you (1) study law and courts; (2) identify as female or non-binary; and (3) are post-PhD/pre-tenure, come hang! The research is erudite, the conversation perfect, and the vibes immaculate :)

one thing i’m stuck on is this idea that “masculine” energy means license to act like a chud in public, as opposed to more traditional notions of public masculinity, such as those that put a premium on the performance of integrity, honesty, honor and generosity.

🏆🏆Congratulations to @rachaelhouston.bsky.social, @christinecbird.bsky.social and Marcy Shieh for winning the Neal Tate Award! #WomenWinAwards #WomenWhoJudicial

NEW: Women experiencing pregnancy loss in states with abortion bans told us they wished they had known what to expect and how to advocate for themselves. We created this guide for anyone who finds themselves in the same position. ⤵️

Congratulations, @thaliagerzso.bsky.social! 🏆x2⃣! #WomenWinAwards #JuniorsWhoJudicial

📚New book alert! 📚 Important and timely work from @kirstenwidner.bsky.social and @annagunderson.bsky.social #polisky

The United States has oligarchs now. Not merely rich people with more personal influence on politics than poorer people have, but a few extremely rich people closely connected to the national leader who act in government-like roles despite never being elected or nominated to any official position.

Created a Starter Park for the State Politics Community go.bsky.app/LDDwKA9 (Happy to add folks!) #polisky

SLAY!!!! We love this piece! "280 Characters of Contention: Analyzing Partisan Behavior on Twitter During Supreme Court Confirmation Processes" by Maron W. Sorenson, @rachaelhouston.bsky.social & Amanda Savage. Now out at Journal of Law and Courts. t.co/bmbLle1qfY #polisky

The Constitution makes ONE simple demand of officeholders. Like instructing Adam & Eve to lay off the fruit, the Framers said, "you may want a fancy European title but the nation's integrity demands you refuse." Alito just ignored the Constitution's command.

A great opportunity for PhD students and early-career scholars studying access to justice. August 16 deadline ✅ american-bar-foundation.breezy.hr/p/477be7b8ad...

"Democratic Backsliding in the American States: The Case of Judicial Independence" I link court-curbing by state legislatures to judicial independence and demonstrate the use of curbing in the states is related to other types of democratic backsliding. doi.org/10.1093/publ... polisky

💥💥 Q: In a diverse legislature, do legislators cooperate to increase their legislative success? Yes, but it doesn't lead to greater legislative success for women and minorities. Out now at PGI, with Tracy Osborn, Emily Schilling, and Rebecca Kreitzer. doi.org/10.1080/2156...

⚖️ Citing theory on legitimacy (law and pol sci) proced justice/motivated reasoning (psych) & prospect theory (behav econ), I study how people think about auth and fundamental gov change in an effort to push understandings forward. Note: There’s more suppt for change than most might expect. U Va Pr

“It’s one space at the end of a sentence, not two.”

📢New #PAG19 Critical Perspectives📢 In "Sister Space" @brownphdgirl.bsky.social, Christopher J. Clark, Anna Mitchell Mahoney, & @mjstrawbridge.bsky.social use Twitter data to identify how Black women representatives resist single-axis approaches to policy making. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Big news from me: now out @SPPQJournal: I bring together policy diffusion and judicial politics literature to analyze why courts rely on other courts’ decisions. I show that state supreme courts learn from and do not emulate one another, but the mechanism is policy-specific. doi.org/10.1017/spq....

🔥🔥 Congratulations to Jessica Schoenherr & Jonathan King for receiving an NSF grant to study judicial collegiality at SCOTUS. #polisky #WomenWhoJudicial #JuniorsWhoJudicial

#WomenWhoJudicial #LawandCourtsWomen

The completed jury form in Carroll v. Trump storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Short answer: A lot. michiganadvance.com/2023/12/26/h...

clarence thomas’s clerks constitute a who’s-who of some of the worst people in this country, each of whom has put in tireless work to degrade american democracy for the sake of oligarchs and would-be authoritarians.

Gender pay gap: Iowa women's basketball coach Lisa Bluder makes less than half of men’s coach McCaffery despite her extraordinary accomplishments. In her 24 years at Iowa, she has led her team to success and national fame but receives underwhelming pay.

Abortion ban "exceptions" don't exist. They never existed. Not for rape. Not for incest. Not for the life of the mother. The only people they're designed to protect is the politicians who tout them as a fraudulent defense of an inhumane policy. Exceptions are a talking point and nothing else.