The Supreme Court may strike down a bill designed to lift Supreme Court secrecy, a law professor has said.
Stephen Gillers, a law professor at New York University, was reacting to a new bill introduced on Tuesday by Congressman Adam Schiff which would allow federal judges' communications to come under the Freedom of Information Act.
According to a press release from Schiff's office, the bill "would extend the transparency afforded by the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to the administrative apparatus of the judicial branch," including Supreme Court justices.
Gillers told Newsweek that the Supreme Court may strike down the bill.
"On one hand, the Court, which is the final arbiter of such things, might look on Schiff's bill as a violation of constitutional separation of powers, at least to the extent it would, in the Court's view, interfere with the Court's deliberations," he said.
However, he said the court may see it as an opportunity to repair its damaged reputation.
"The Court's reputation is justifiably suffering now. It must be receptive to the public's desire for confidence in its work."
"It must avoid what is easily, and at times fairly, seen as a knee jerk, even an arrogant, dismissal of the public interest."
He said that the Supreme Court must give sufficient reason if it does try to block attempts to lift the secrecy surrounding federal courts.
"To the extent the Court resists the Schiff bill's requirement, it must be prepared to explain its reasons persuasively. To many, the Court seems to have gotten too big for its britches. It must address that perception," Gillers said.
President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday night that he is to focus on Supreme Court reform in his final months in office.
In an address to explain why he is withdrawing from the presidential election, Biden said that American democracy needed Supreme Court reform.
"I'm going to call for Supreme Court reform because this is critical to our democracy, Supreme Court reform. You know, I will keep working to ensure America remains strong and secure and the leader of the free world," he said.
On Saturday, July 20, Newsweek reported that Biden is preparing to endorse significant changes to the Supreme Court.
According to a recent Washington Post report, Biden is poised to support major reforms, such as establishing term limits for justices and implementing an enforceable ethics code.
The president is also considering whether to back a constitutional amendment that would eliminate broad immunity for presidents and other top officials—a way to counter the recent Supreme Court decision that granted broad presidential immunity.
Newsweek contacted Biden's spokesperson via email and the Supreme Court's public information office for comment on Friday.
Biden's reform attempt comes after Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito faced criticism for accepting undisclosed gifts and perceived biases in cases involving Donald Trump and Thomas' wealthy benefactors.
Both justices have declined to recuse themselves from Trump-related cases, prompting Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, to file articles of impeachment against them earlier this month. The impeachment attempt is unlikely to succeed in the Republican-controlled House.
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About the writer
Sean O'Driscoll is a Newsweek Senior Crime and Courts Reporter based in Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. law. ... Read more
