Society of American Law Teachers (SALT) and American Constitution Society Cover Workshop - Legitimacy Crisis on the Court: Working Within and Beyond the System

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Session Type: Other Organization Events

Session Capacity: N/A

Hotel: N/A

Room: La Costa

Floor: Fourth Floor, South Tower

The sweeping holding in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, undoing a half-century of constitutional protection for abortion, is just the highest-profile example of a Court in the throes of a legitimacy crisis. Increased political maneuvering in recent years to achieve a super-majority that appears dedicated to fulfilling the conservative legal movement’s goals has resulted in a significant decline in public support—three quarters of Americans now have little or no confidence in the nation’s highest court. A series of decisions in the last Term, along with a number of cases on the docket this Term, also have members of the legal community questioning the Court’s legitimacy and wondering how to proceed with a seemingly results-oriented judiciary.

While some pursue Court reforms to address long-term institutional deficiencies, many lawyers and legal scholars must work within the judiciary as it exists, whether trying to articulate a cogent vision of constitutional and statutory law or advocating for outcomes in specific cases before the Court. Balancing this work with the need to raise awareness of the Court’s legitimacy crisis and agitate for change creates a tension that can be a challenge to reconcile.

Join the American Constitution Society and the Society of American Law Teachers for a discussion of how lawyers and law scholars might navigate these challenges and create opportunities to work within and beyond the system to achieve change.