Legal Progress

Legal Progress is the legal policy program at the Center for American Progress. No matter the issue—health care, immigration, marriage equality, offshore oil drilling, privacy, ethics—the judiciary will continue to play an increasingly important role in the lives of hardworking Americans as well as in the success of the progressive legislative agenda. Through legal and policy analysis, communications and public education and convening key stakeholders, Legal Progress is helping to push the American legal system in a more progressive direction and educate the public about the impact of the courts on issues they care most about.

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Pipelines to Power: Encouraging Professional Diversity on the Federal Appellate Bench Report
 (A courthouse sits empty in the Jack Brooks Federal Building in Beaumont, Texas, November 2013.)

Pipelines to Power: Encouraging Professional Diversity on the Federal Appellate Bench

Policymakers can diversify the federal courts by confirming more lawyers from civil rights and public defender backgrounds to the bench as well as creating pipelines of young attorneys from a range of professions for future judgeships.

Maggie Jo Buchanan

The Need for Supreme Court Term Limits Report

The Need for Supreme Court Term Limits

It is essential to update the rules governing the Supreme Court to better reflect modern life.

Maggie Jo Buchanan

13 Troubling Judicial Nominees You Missed This Year Report

13 Troubling Judicial Nominees You Missed This Year

These 13 nominees may have stayed under the radar, but they are poised to shape the U.S. judiciary branch for decades to come.

Tony Hanna, Abbey Meller

Big Business’s Bonanza Week in the Supreme Court Article
A flag adorned with corporate logos and fake money flies in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., October 2013. (Getty/Drew Angerer)

Big Business’s Bonanza Week in the Supreme Court

The new 5-4 conservative majority is likely to rule against the legal rights of workers and consumers.

Devon Schmidt, Jake Faleschini

Why Courts Matter in the Trump Era Video

Why Courts Matter in the Trump Era

The importance of the federal court system becomes increasingly apparent as the Trump administration attacks fundamental American values and protections.

Jake Faleschini, Meghan Miller, Jasmine Hardy

North Carolina’s Attacks on the Courts Lead to Fewer Judges of Color Report

North Carolina’s Attacks on the Courts Lead to Fewer Judges of Color

African American judges have been caught in the crossfire of the North Carolina legislature’s war on the judiciary.

Billy Corriher, Michele L. Jawando, Lukasz Grabowski

Trump’s Anti-Worker Judges Will Outlast His Administration Article
Thomas Farr is sworn in during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on his district court nomination in Washington, September 20, 2017. (AP/Alex Brandon)

Trump’s Anti-Worker Judges Will Outlast His Administration

As the Supreme Court takes aim at public sector unions, President Trump is nominating judges with a record of putting corporations over workers.

Billy Corriher

How Distorted Districts Lead to Distorted Laws Article
Lawmakers study a map of a proposed redistricting plan at the State House in Montgomery, Alabama, May 9, 2012. (AP/Dave Martin)

How Distorted Districts Lead to Distorted Laws

Legislators are less responsive to the will of the public due to gerrymandering.

Liz Kennedy, Billy Corriher

President Trump’s Rubber-Stamp Judiciary Article
Then-Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch is greeted by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Capitol Hill in Washington, February 2017. (AP/J. Scott Applewhite)

President Trump’s Rubber-Stamp Judiciary

The president has a record number of judicial vacancies to fill, and some of his picks come from the fringes of the right wing.

Zachary Winkler

The Not-So-Secret Attack on Our Voting Rights Video

The Not-So-Secret Attack on Our Voting Rights

With voting rights under attack at both the state and national levels, we asked Sarah Audelo of the Alliance for Youth Action and Shaneice Simmons of Rock the Vote to talk about how progressives can fight back to make voting more convenient and accessible.

Andrew Satter, Raman Preet Kaur

Gorsuch Signals an Extreme Threat to LGBT Rights Article
Judge Neil Gorsuch testifies in Washington at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, March 22, 2017. (AP/J. Scott Applewhite)

Gorsuch Signals an Extreme Threat to LGBT Rights

Neil Gorsuch’s refusal to recognize LGBT people as a class during his confirmation hearing could signal a threat to the future of LGBT equality.

Sharita Gruberg, Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza

Judge Gorsuch Threatens the Dignity of LGBT People Article
People gather in Lafayette Park to see the White House illuminated with rainbow colors in commemoration of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling to legalize same-sex marriage in Washington on June 26, 2015. (AP/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Judge Gorsuch Threatens the Dignity of LGBT People

The constitutional right to dignity is critical to LGBT people. Gorsuch is likely to reject that right.

Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza

Trump’s Supreme Court Nominee Puts the Rights of Corporations over Individuals Report
Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch meets with Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) on Capitol Hill in Washington, February 14, 2017. ((AP/Andrew Harnik))

Trump’s Supreme Court Nominee Puts the Rights of Corporations over Individuals

Judge Neil Gorsuch has a record of ruling in favor of big business, and he joined the first federal court ruling that allowed a for-profit corporation to claim a right to exercise religion.

Billy Corriher

Unfairness in Class Action: A New Attack on Civil Rights Article
A courtroom sits empty on February 13, 2017, in Honolulu. (AP/Jennifer Sinco Kelleher)

Unfairness in Class Action: A New Attack on Civil Rights

Congress and the Trump administration do not just want to cut funding for civil legal aid. They are trying to make it more difficult for Americans to pursue justice altogether.

Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza

Our Courts Matter for the Muslim Community Article
A teenage boy from Yemen wipes his eyes as he walks with his father and his uncle after arrival at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, February 5, 2017. ((AP/Alexander F. Yuan))

Our Courts Matter for the Muslim Community

The courts are a critical independent check on this unpredictable and dangerous administration’s attack on the Muslim community.

Anisha Singh, Billy Corriher

5 Things You Need to Know About Judge Gorsuch Video

5 Things You Need to Know About Judge Gorsuch

President Donald Trump has nominated Judge Neil Gorsuch to fill the currently vacant seat on the U.S. Supreme Court. Here are five things you need to know about Judge Gorsuch.

Andrew Satter, Aki Suzuki, Billy Corriher, 1 More Jake Faleschini

Deregulation Nation: Congress Wants to Let Corporations Take Charge Article
Visitors tour the Rotunda on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, November 15, 2016. (AP/Susan Walsh)

Deregulation Nation: Congress Wants to Let Corporations Take Charge

Congress is not only trying to remove vital federal regulations that protect Americans and their interests from big businesses, but also block agencies from making new ones.

Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza

Big-Money Courts Decide Fate of Local Fracking Rules Report

Big-Money Courts Decide Fate of Local Fracking Rules

As states battle with municipalities over fracking regulations, oil and gas companies are spending big to elect the courts and legislatures that define the scope of local authority.

Billy Corriher

Dirty Money, Dirty Water II Video

Dirty Money, Dirty Water II

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled that municipalities cannot regulate fracking waste, but many of the justices who made this decision received large campaign contributions from fracking companies and fossil fuel interests.

Billy Corriher, Lauren Malkani

5 Things You Need to Know About Sen. Jeff Sessions Video

5 Things You Need to Know About Sen. Jeff Sessions

Here are five things that Americans need to know about attorney general nominee Sen. Jeff Sessions.

Andrew Satter, Billy Corriher, Jake Faleschini

Making Justice Equal Report

Making Justice Equal

Promoting equal, meaningful access to legal representation in the U.S. justice system is critical to ending poverty, combating discrimination, and creating opportunity.

Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza

Redistricting and Representation Report

Redistricting and Representation

Manipulated election maps undermine the basic tenets of healthy democracy, including fair representation and government accountability. Redistricting procedures should be reformed to ensure a system of representative politics.

Liz Kennedy, Billy Corriher, Danielle Root

This Election Day, Americans Cannot Afford to Take a Seat Article
Voters fill out their ballots at the Hamilton County Board of Elections as early voting begins statewide, Wednesday, October 12, 2016, in Cincinnati, Ohio. (AP/John Minchillo)

This Election Day, Americans Cannot Afford to Take a Seat

Divisive rhetoric harms many diverse groups—including women, Muslims, and those perceived to be Muslim—and Americans must use their vote to speak up.

Anisha Singh

Preventing Problems at the Polls: Pennsylvania Report

Preventing Problems at the Polls: Pennsylvania

Recent political rhetoric has raised the potential for disruptions at the polls in Pennsylvania. The state’s antiquated election laws should provide stronger protections for voters, but the Pennsylvania Department of State has issued guidance clarifying rules for voter intimidation and behavior at the polls. Here are some things to watch out for.

Billy Corriher, Liz Kennedy

Elected Judges Rule Against LGBT Rights More Often Than Appointed Judges Article
Roy Moore speaks to an audience in Montgomery, Alabama on November 6, 2012. (AP/David Bundy)

Elected Judges Rule Against LGBT Rights More Often Than Appointed Judges

A recent study shows that elected judges are more likely to rule against LGBT rights, as illustrated by the recently terminated political career of an Alabama judge.

Billy Corriher

Big Business Is Still Dominating State Supreme Courts Report
Texas Supreme Court justices listen as an attorney argues in a case, November 2015. (AP/Eric Gay)

Big Business Is Still Dominating State Supreme Courts

Many of the state supreme courts that have seen the most campaign cash—Ohio, Alabama, Texas, and Michigan—have voted more often for corporate defendants and against injured workers, consumers, and patients.

Billy Corriher

State or Federal Court? Fact Sheet
The U.S. Supreme Court building is seen in Washington on February 13, 2016. (AP/Jon Elswick)

State or Federal Court?

A guide to distinguish the differences and similarities between state and federal courts, and explain the challenges that exist for both court systems’ processes.

Anisha Singh, Billy Corriher

The Need for a Reflective Judiciary Demands a Return to Normal Order Article
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) appears at a town hall meeting in Ocheyedan, Iowa, on March 28, 2016. (AP/Charlie Neibergall)

The Need for a Reflective Judiciary Demands a Return to Normal Order

Fifty-two federal judicial nominees are currently waiting for Senate action, underscoring congressional gridlock and the need to put people before politics.

Danyelle Solomon, Michele L. Jawando

Mitch McConnell: A Legacy of Obstruction Article
The Capitol in Washington, D.C., is illuminated during a thunderstorm, February 2016. (AP/J. Scott Applewhite)

Mitch McConnell: A Legacy of Obstruction

Inaction and obstruction by the Sen. McConnell-led Senate has delayed justice for millions of Americans.

Anisha Singh, Nathaniel Glynn

Justice Still Waits: The Nondecisions of an 8-Justice Supreme Court Article
Police stand outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on June 23, 2016. (AP/Evan Vucci)

Justice Still Waits: The Nondecisions of an 8-Justice Supreme Court

The judicial vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court has dramatically hindered the Court’s ability to make meaningful decisions on key issues, and an obstructionist Senate is to blame.

Abby Bar-Lev Wiley

The Ongoing Battle to Protect the Precious Right to Vote Article
A voter walks toward an empty bank of voting stations at a polling place in Seattle on the day of Washington state's 2008 presidential primary. (AP/Elaine Thompson)

The Ongoing Battle to Protect the Precious Right to Vote

Americans are sick and tired of being sick and tired of waiting on Congress to act and ensure the right to vote for all.

Danyelle Solomon, Michele L. Jawando

Why Courts Matter Video

Why Courts Matter

With a vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court, CAP asked scholars, litigators, and thought leaders why courts matter to them.

Andrew Satter, Jake Faleschini, Abby Bar-Lev Wiley, 1 More Alyssa Jones

Justice Waits for a Nine-Member Supreme Court Report
A flag on the Supreme Court building's front plaza flies at half-staff on February 25, 2016, in honor of Justice Antonin Scalia. (AP/J. Scott Applewhite)

Justice Waits for a Nine-Member Supreme Court

Justice will be delayed for millions of Americans if the Senate refuses to do its job and vote on a Supreme Court nominee.

Michele L. Jawando, Billy Corriher

Just a Judge Video

Just a Judge

Follow the journey of a federal judicial nominee from appointment to confirmation, and see the many ways justice can be delayed along the way.

Anisha Singh, Kulsum Ebrahim

Elections Matter Report
A lone voter casts a ballot during the statewide general election, November 3, 2015, in Denver. (AP/David Zalubowski)

Elections Matter

State legislatures have traditionally handled redistricting, which has created partisan and predictable elections that discourage millennial participation in the democratic process.

Sheila E. Isong

More Money, More Problems Report
Texas Supreme Court justices listen to oral arguments in Texas' latest school finance trial at the state Supreme Court, September 1, 2015, in Austin, Texas. (AP/Eric Gay)

More Money, More Problems

A new CAP report looks at the challenge of sustaining judicial diversity on the bench in the face of big-money judicial elections.

Michele L. Jawando, Billy Corriher

Restoring the Balance Report
The Supreme Court is seen in Washington, D.C., on April 9, 2010. (AP/Evan Vucci)

Restoring the Balance

One year after Hobby Lobby, state legislators, organizations, and for-profit corporations are using religious liberty to infringe on the rights of women, religious minorities, and LGBT people.

Carolyn Davis, Laura E. Durso, Carmel Martin, 8 More Donna Barry, Billy Corriher, Sharita Gruberg, Jeff Krehely, Sarah McBride, Ian Millhiser, Anisha Singh, Sally Steenland

Pope Francis and Access to Justice Article
Painters work on a mural of Pope Francis on the side of a New York City building on August 28, 2015. (AP/Mark Lennihan)

Pope Francis and Access to Justice

The record number of federal court judicial vacancies contradicts Pope Francis’ call for better governance and a more just society.

Anisha Singh, Claire Markham

Infographic: RFRA Repercussions Article

Infographic: RFRA Repercussions

Overly broad state religious freedom restoration acts, or RFRAs, threaten true religious freedom and could have far-reaching negative consequences.

Donna Barry, Billy Corriher, Carolyn Davis, 3 More Chester Hawkins, Lauren Kokum, Sarah McBride

Why Courts Matter Report
Demonstrators gather outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013, as the court heard arguments on campaign finance. (AP/Susan Walsh)

Why Courts Matter

Legal disputes over gun violence, money in politics, and voting rights illustrate the profound impact that U.S. federal courts have on the lives of all Americans.

Michele L. Jawando, Sean Wright

Infographic: The ACA at 5: Five Things at Risk After King v. Burwell Article
 (ACA at 5 thumbnail)

Infographic: The ACA at 5: Five Things at Risk After King v. Burwell

King v. Burwell has the potential to undo all of the significant improvements to health care in America by creating a death spiral of higher premiums for fewer, sicker customers.

Sean Wright

Dirty Water, Dirty Money: Coal Ash and the Attack on North Carolina’s Courts Video

Dirty Water, Dirty Money: Coal Ash and the Attack on North Carolina’s Courts

This new minidocumentary from Legal Progress showcases the real human impact of special interest money that is infiltrating judicial elections by featuring one North Carolina family’s story of how coal ash pollution poisoned their community.

Lauren Malkani, Billy Corriher, Sean Wright

The Million Dollar Judges of 2014 Article
Chief Justice Mark Martin responds to a question during the North Carolina Supreme Court Candidate Forum in Raleigh on September 17, 2014. (AP/Gerry Broome)

The Million Dollar Judges of 2014

Spending on judicial elections reached $15 million in 2014—a record for a midterm election—fueled by money from attorneys and corporate litigants.

Billy Corriher

Dirty Money, Dirty Water Report
The Allen Steam Station, operated by Duke Energy, sits on Lake Wylie in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Lauren Malkani)

Dirty Money, Dirty Water

A troubling correlation between judicial campaign contributions and success rates for law firms underscores the need to restore the state’s public financing of judicial candidates.

Billy Corriher, Sean Wright

Uncounted Votes Report

Uncounted Votes

A first-of-its-kind analysis of county-level 2012 election data finds that, in 16 states, voters in counties with a higher percentage of minorities cast provisional ballots at higher rates.

Joshua Field, Charles Posner, Anna Chu

In Texas, No Justice for Injured Patients Video

In Texas, No Justice for Injured Patients

This new video from Legal Progress documents the damaging effects of Texas’ 2003 tort reform legislation, which makes it virtually impossible for emergency room patients to hold hospitals accountable for medical malpractice.

Billy Corriher

Keeping Campaign Cash Out of North Carolina Courts Fact Sheet
Signs of coal ash swirl in the Dan River after a spill at the Dan River Power Plant in Eden, North Carolina, on February 5, 2014. (AP/Gerry Broome)

Keeping Campaign Cash Out of North Carolina Courts

The repeal of public financing for judicial candidates could give corporate polluters and other donors more influence in North Carolina courts.

Billy Corriher, Sean Wright

Most States Flunk a Test of Their Recusal Rules Interactive
 (recusal map)

Most States Flunk a Test of Their Recusal Rules

A CAP analysis finds that states have failed to strengthen their judicial ethics rules to address the growth in campaign cash.

Billy Corriher, Jake Paiva

Texas, Where Are the Judges? Report
Then-Senate candidate Ted Cruz (R-TX), right, and Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) listen to a question from reporters outside a polling station in Dallas. (AP/LM Otero)

Texas, Where Are the Judges?

Federal court judicial vacancies in Texas are creating an untenable backlog of cases and denying Texans access to justice.

Sandhya Bathija, Joshua Field, Phillip Martin

Discrimination? Corporate Loopholes? Law Avoidance? Hobby Lobby’s Potentially Slippery Slope Fact Sheet

Discrimination? Corporate Loopholes? Law Avoidance? Hobby Lobby’s Potentially Slippery Slope

A poorly decided Hobby Lobby ruling has the ability to dramatically redefine religious liberty from a fundamental value that protects genuine religious beliefs to a loophole that can be used to discriminate and create unfair advantages in the corporate world.

Joshua Field

Infographic: Hobby Lobby’s Slippery Slope Article

Infographic: Hobby Lobby’s Slippery Slope

The outcome of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. v. Sebelius has the potential to dramatically transform religious liberty.

Joshua Field

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