Desmyther V Brennan

Author : Edward V. Heck
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 532 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (854 download)

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Download or read book Justice Brennan and the Changing Supreme Court written by Edward V. Heck and published by . This book was released on 1978 with total page 532 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study of decision making in the modern Supreme Court proceeds from the development of a theoretical framework to analysis of the achievements of Justice William J. Brennan, Jr., during more than twenty years on the Court. A preliminary consideration of relationships between individual justices, blocs, and the Court as a whole leads to the formulation of a framework for analysis that guides the substantive investigation. The individual justice is the building block of this framework. Norms associated with the role of Supreme Court justice shape the institutional setting, but the individual remains essentially free to vote in accordance with his policy preferences and individual role orientation. In order to shape public policy through an opinion of the Court, however, the individual justice must gain majority support. Supreme Court opinions, therefore, are shaped by a complex process involving both individual choice and group interaction. Application of this framework to Brennan's thirteen years on the Warren Court and the early years of the Burger Court reveals shifts in Brennan's position within the Court as the Court itself changed with each new appointment. Between 1956 and 1962, Brennan's contributions tended to take the form of moderatelyworded, often technical, opinions of the Court when a majority of the justices supported civil liberties claims and cautious dissents when they did not. Between 1962 and 1969, he became the central figure on a Court increasingly committed to the libertarian, yet pragmatic, positions he favored. Voting with the majority in more than 96 percent of the Court's decisions, he wrote many of the most influential opinions of an era that was truly the heyday of Warren and Brennan. After 1969, he became increasingly isolated from the conservative mainstream of the Burger Court. Yet, he remained on the bench, vigorously protesting decisions which he believed undermined the achievements of the Warren Court. At the political system level, the broad outlines of change in the Court's direction during Brennan's tenure may be traced ultimately to the electoral arena. Still, the norm of individual responsibility propounded by justices like Brennan has enabled the modern Court to perform its function as guardian of lasting constitutional values.