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JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
In 2019, the College published a White Paper entitled, “The Need to Promote and Defend Fair and Impartial Courts.” The Judiciary Committee, chaired by Donna
Melby, is re-examining the 2019 White Paper and con- ducting a study of pending legislation in various states that adversely impacts the independence of our courts.
JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE COMMITTEE
The mandate of the Judicial Independence Committee in- cludes the duty “to recommend initiatives as appropriate . . . in educating the public regarding the judiciary’s role
in protecting the rule of law.” In furtherance of that man- date, the committee crafted a well-articulated, thoughtful set of recommendations for changes to the confirmation process in the United States Senate for nominees to the Supreme Court. The last several Senate confirmation hearings have caused an undermining of respect for the Judiciary – and for the Senate itself. The committee’s rec- ommendations will be set forth in a White Paper, which will be submitted to the Board of Regents for its approval in September. As soon as it is approved, the College will make a copy available to all Fellows.
In keeping with its mission, the committee also helps the Executive Committee with responses to instances where threats of any kind are made against a judge. Although it’s important to respond quickly to such attacks, it takes time to write and obtain approval for a letter denouncing the threat or attack. The committee has dealt with the time issue in two ways. First, it has written a model letter to have on hand that can quickly be adapted to a given situation when there is a threat against a judge. Second, it has created a set of guidelines to help the Executive Committee determine whether the situation calls for a response from the College. With these tools in hand, the Executive Committee should be able to respond more quickly when a response is warranted.
TASK FORCE ON CIVICS EDUCATION
At the Leadership Workshop in Newport, Rhode Island, the state and province chairs and the general committee chairs had a live- ly discussion about what the College can do about the decline of respect for the rule of law in the United States. Everyone agreed that an increased knowledge of basic civics would help alleviate the problem. In response, the Col- lege formed a Task Force on Civics Education, whose goal was to determine how to match the enthusiasm and skills of our Fellows with a well-respected organization that would help us reach the communities who would benefit from hearing from us. I am pleased to report that the Task Force completed its work and
recommended that the College pursue a partnership with the National Constitution Center (NCC) by having Fel- lows participate as scholars in its Peer-to-Peer Scholar Ex- change Program. The Executive Committee approved that recommendation at a meeting in early June.
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JOURNAL