U.S. Supreme Court
Oct. 12, 2021
There is no such thing as value-neutral judging
Over a century ago, the Legal Realists exploded the myth that judges can mechanically apply the law without making value choices. Now, astoundingly, several U.S. Supreme Court justices are trying to tell us that their views and ideology have nothing to do with their decisions. That is nonsense and it is hard to imagine they are persuading anyone.
Erwin Chemerinsky
Dean and Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law
UC Berkeley School of Law
Erwin's most recent book is "Worse Than Nothing: The Dangerous Fallacy of Originalism." He is also the author of "Closing the Courthouse," (Yale University Press 2017).
Over a century ago, the Legal Realists exploded the myth that judges can mechanically apply the law without making value choices. Now, astoundingly, several U.S. Supreme Court justices are trying to tell us that their views and ideology have nothing to do with their decisions. That is nonsense and it is hard to imagine they are persuading anyone.
For the first hundred or more years of American history, there was a widespread belief in forma...
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