Michael Schwartz on new ideas proposed for federal judiciary

Michael Schwartz, Law Professor:

Hi! I’m Michael Schwartz. I’m a law professor. President Joe Biden appointed a bipartisan commission to study court reform. The commission will have 180 days or six months to provide recommendations.

The commission has two ideas: cameras in federal courtrooms, including the U.S. Supreme Court, and term limits for the Supreme Court justices. Those two ideas are now being looked at.

Regarding cameras in the courtroom, Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), both former chairs of the Judiciary Committee in Congress, have long advocated cameras in the Supreme Court to increase public access to oral arguments.

Creating term limits for Supreme Court justices is another reform idea with bipartisan support. Representatives Don Beyer of Virginia and Joe Kennedy III of Massachusetts, both liberal Democrats, proposed a bill for 18-year term limits this past September.

During the 2016 presidential primaries, Governors Rick Perry (TX) and Mike Huckabee (AR) and former HUD Secretary Ben Carson, all conservative Republicans, announced their support of Supreme Court term limits. Similarly, Senators Marco Rubio, Rand Paul and Ted Cruz, also all conservative Republicans, expressed support for term limits.

Both conservative and liberal legal scholars support term limits because it is fair, does not require amending the Constitution, and gives voters an opportunity to have input on the Court through their vote for president.

What do you think about cameras in the courtroom? Term limits for Supreme Court justices?