{"id":1813,"date":"2020-03-01T15:55:02","date_gmt":"2020-03-01T15:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/live-cornell-law-review.pantheonsite.io\/?p=1813"},"modified":"2020-03-01T15:55:02","modified_gmt":"2020-03-01T15:55:02","slug":"a-tale-of-two-courts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/2020\/03\/01\/a-tale-of-two-courts\/","title":{"rendered":"A Tale of Two Courts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The world\u2019s oldest democracy and the world\u2019s largest democracy are admittedly different places. One is geographically expansive and demographically changing; it features a presidential system of governance and reflects a general assumption that the state ought to stay out of peoples\u2019 lives wherever possible. The other is geographically smaller (though not small) and riven by religious and linguistic divisions more than by race or national origin; it features a parliamentary state that is, in large part, designed to actively reform the society it governs.<sup class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_1');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_1');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_1\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">1<\/sup><\/a><cite class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><span class=\"footnote-inner\">1. GARY JEFFREY JACOBSOHN, CONSTITUTIONAL IDENTITY 214 (2010) (discussing constitutional identity and, in particular, \u201cthe Indian and American cases, both of which contain preservative and&nbsp;&#x2026; <span class=\"footnote_tooltip_continue\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_1');\">Continue reading<\/span><\/span><\/cite><\/sup><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1813_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Both, however, are experiencing rising tides of nativism and polarization led by genre-defying politicians who command cultish appeal and are widely believed to be weakening the fundamental principles of democratic governance.<sup class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_2');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_2');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_2\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">2<\/sup><\/a><cite class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><span class=\"footnote-inner\">2. On the growing polarization of politics in America, see Timothy Williams, With Most States Under One Party\u2019s Control, America Grows More Divided, N.Y. TIMES (June 11, 2019),&nbsp;&#x2026; <span class=\"footnote_tooltip_continue\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_2');\">Continue reading<\/span><\/span><\/cite><\/sup><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1813_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script> Both share a Common Law system rooted in a linked colonial past as well as a strong commitment to judicial review and the rule of law. Most of all, both are facing active and profound crises of confidence regarding their apex courts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This Essay evaluates a recent pair of proposals for how to fix the Supreme Court of one country (America) in light of the experiences of the Supreme Court of the other country (India).<sup class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_3');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_3');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_3\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">3<\/sup><\/a><cite class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><span class=\"footnote-inner\">3. Daniel Epps &amp; Ganesh Sitaraman, <em>How to Save the Supreme Court<\/em>, 129 YALE L.J. 148, 181 (2019).<\/span><\/cite><\/sup><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1813_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script> To be sure, we cannot directly transpose best practices from one country to the other, given the contextual differences described above, among others. But\u2014thanks to the different paths taken by the American and Indian courts<sup class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_4');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_4');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_4\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">4<\/sup><\/a><cite class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><span class=\"footnote-inner\">4. Nick Robinson, Structure Matters: The Impact of Court Structure on the Indian and U.S. Supreme Courts, 61 AM. J. COMP. L. 173, 175 (2013) (noting that while both courts share roots and&nbsp;&#x2026; <span class=\"footnote_tooltip_continue\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1813_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_4');\">Continue reading<\/span><\/span><\/cite><\/sup><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_4').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1813_1_4', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script>\u2014we <em>can <\/em>learn something from the comparison, which in a very practical and tangible way reveals complications that as yet may seem purely hypothetical to American audiences. My goal is not to wholly reject either of the proposals so much as it is, in the tradition of comparative legal scholarship, to offer insights and cautionary notes based on lessons learned elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Part I briefly recaps four earlier approaches to reforming the U.S. Supreme Court against which the recent proposals measure themselves, and it also highlights some of the objections against those earlier approaches. Part II describes the two proposals in question\u2014the Supreme Court Lottery and the Balanced Bench\u2014and outlines some general concerns one might raise in response. My focus here is on whether the proposals are desirable, not on whether they are constitutional. Part III first sketches an outline of the Indian Supreme Court, before using specific examples from the Court\u2019s history to illustrate potential shortcomings in either&nbsp;the Supreme Court Lottery or the Balanced Bench.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"speaker-mute footnotes_reference_container\"> <div class=\"footnote_container_prepare\"><p><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_label pointer\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_1813_1();\">References<\/span><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button\" style=\"display: none;\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_1813_1();\">[<a id=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_1813_1\">+<\/a>]<\/span><\/p><\/div> <div id=\"footnote_references_container_1813_1\" style=\"\"><table class=\"footnotes_table footnote-reference-container\"><caption class=\"accessibility\">References<\/caption> <tbody> \r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1813_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_1');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_1\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>1<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">GARY JEFFREY JACOBSOHN, CONSTITUTIONAL IDENTITY 214 (2010) (discussing constitutional identity and, in particular, \u201cthe Indian and American cases, both of which contain preservative and transformative elements, the latter predominant in India and the former in the United States\u201d).<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1813_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_2');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_2\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>2<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">On the growing polarization of politics in America, <em>see <\/em>Timothy Williams, <em>With Most States Under One Party\u2019s Control, America Grows More Divided<\/em>, N.Y. TIMES (June 11, 2019), <span class=\"footnote_url_wrap\">https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/06\/11\/us\/state-<\/span> legislatures-partisan- polarized.html?action=click&amp;module=Top%20Stories&amp;pgtype=Homepage [<a href=\"https:\/\/perma.cc\/2RLF-JL68\"><span class=\"footnote_url_wrap\">https:\/\/perma.cc\/2RLF-JL68<\/span><\/a>].<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1813_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_3');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_3\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>3<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">Daniel Epps &amp; Ganesh Sitaraman, <em>How to Save the Supreme Court<\/em>, 129 YALE L.J. 148, 181 (2019).<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1813_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1813_1_4');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1813_1_4\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>4<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">Nick Robinson, <em>Structure Matters: The Impact of Court Structure on the Indian and U.S. Supreme Courts<\/em>, 61 AM. J. COMP. L. 173, 175 (2013) (noting that while both courts share roots and characteristics, \u201c[t]hey have evolved. . . so that today they represent extreme ends of the type of structural characteristics found in supreme courts\u201d).<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n <\/tbody> <\/table> <\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> function footnote_expand_reference_container_1813_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_1813_1').show(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_1813_1').text('\u2212'); } function footnote_collapse_reference_container_1813_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_1813_1').hide(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_1813_1').text('+'); } function footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_1813_1() { if (jQuery('#footnote_references_container_1813_1').is(':hidden')) { footnote_expand_reference_container_1813_1(); } else { footnote_collapse_reference_container_1813_1(); } } function footnote_moveToReference_1813_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_1813_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); if (l_obj_Target.length) { jQuery( 'html, body' ).delay( 0 ); jQuery('html, body').animate({ scrollTop: l_obj_Target.offset().top - window.innerHeight * 0.2 }, 380); } } function footnote_moveToAnchor_1813_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_1813_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); if (l_obj_Target.length) { jQuery( 'html, body' ).delay( 0 ); jQuery('html, body').animate({ scrollTop: l_obj_Target.offset().top - window.innerHeight * 0.2 }, 380); } }<\/script>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The world\u2019s oldest democracy and the world\u2019s largest democracy are admittedly different places. One is geographically expansive and demographically changing; it features a presidential system of governance and reflects a general assumption that the state ought to stay out of peoples\u2019 lives wherever possible. The other is geographically smaller (though not small) and riven by&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,15],"tags":[200,383,416,628,664],"class_list":["post-1813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archives","category-clr-online-volume-104","tag-comparative-law","tag-india","tag-judicial-reform","tag-supreme-court","tag-united-states"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1813"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1813\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}