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Article
Why the Supreme Court Cares About Elites, Not the American People
98 Georgetown Law Journal 1515-1581 (2010)
  • Lawrence Baum
  • Neal Devins, William & Mary Law School
Abstract

Supreme Court Justices care more about the views of academics, journalists, and other elites than they do about public opinion. This is true of nearly all Justices and is especially true of swing Justices, who often cast the critical votes in the Court’s most visible decisions. In this Article, we will explain why we think this is so and, in so doing, challenge both the dominant political science models of judicial behavior and the significant work of Barry Friedman, Jeffrey Rosen, and others who link Supreme Court decision making to public opinion.

Document Type
Article
Publication Date
8-1-2010
Citation Information
Lawrence Baum and Neal Devins. "Why the Supreme Court Cares About Elites, Not the American People" 98 Georgetown Law Journal 1515-1581 (2010) (2010)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/neale_devins/89/