The rhetoric of judicial impartiality, of non-partisanship, of separation of powers dominates the language of judges – and of lawyers and acolytes in the media….

Source: OTHERWISE: Chafetz: Nixon/Trump: Strategies of Judicial Aggrandizement – Georgetown – forthcoming

Chafetz’s forthcoming Strategies of Judicial Aggrandizement is a rare treatment of the courts the way others are treated.  We are accustomed to the charge that bureaucracies try to increase their power, that legislatures overreach, and that Presidents tend toward the imperial (thank you Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.).  But rarely does “judicial aggrandizement” get any attention.

We have arrived at a time of reflection.  When Barack Obama was elected we felt, just perhaps, we have moved decisively toward that promised…

Source: OTHERWISE: Sherrilyn A. Ifill: Lawyers Enabled Trump’s Worst Abuses – The New York Times

NAACP LDF President Sherrilyn A. Ifill looks to South Africa’s  Truth & Reconciliation Commission as a model for use to follow – to look at our profession’s failures.  – GWC

Source: OTHERWISE: Arizona Supreme Court opens door to non-lawyer ownership of law firms 

The Arizona Supreme Court – effective January 1 – has authorized non-lawyer ownership of law firms and other “Alternative Business Structures” including licensed paraprofessionals who can complete forms and represent clients.

The ABA Journal reports that Arizona Vice Chief Justice played a key role with David Byers of the state Administrative Office of the Courts in examining how legal services are delivered.  The task force of the Arizona Supreme Court reported in October 2019:  It recommended that the Court

Eliminate Arizona’s ERs 5.4 and 5.7 and amend ERs 1.0 through 5.3 to remove the explicit barrier to lawyers and nonlawyers co-owning businesses that engage in the practice of law while preserving the dual goals of ensuring the professional independence of lawyers and protecting the public.