Ruth Chance Lecture Series: Nan Aron

On Monday, September 22nd, Alliance for Justice president, Nan Aron delivered a talk entitled "Not Four, but Forty" at the University of California's Boalt Hall as part of its Ruth Chance Lecture Series. The title of her remarks refer to the fact that in this presidential election we will be determining the future of the Supreme Court, not for four years, but for forty. This event was a great opportunity for law students and faculty to learn more about the upcoming election and its impact on the courts. More than fifty students attended, making this the highest attended lecture out of the series.

Nan began the presentation by showing a clip from AFJ's 2007 film, Supreme Injustices. The clip, narrated by Emmy award-winner Bradley Whitford, introduced viewers to Lilly Ledbetter, an Alabama worker whose pay discrimination suit was rejected by a sharply divided Supreme Court.  This reversal was a stunning defeat for all those who believe in equal pay for equal work. This case highlights just how much impact the Court has on the lives of every day Americans. In anticipation of the 2008 U.S. presidential elections, the film emphasizes the most important task of the next president will be to nominate justices and judges who will enforce the rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution. 

Nan Aaron spoke about the importance of the federal judiciary, and how recent conservative presidents have engaged in a determined effort to pack the courts with movement conservatives. As a result, our current court system is severely unbalanced, with a preponderance of conservative ideologues offset only by moderate appointees. She noted that 10 out of 13 circuit courts are dominated by conservatives, and that the Supreme Court is likely to face as many as three vacancies—all from the center-left—over the term of the next president. She warned against falling into the trap of focusing only on While many people focus only on Roe v. Wade, and its prospects. The constant discussion of the court reexamining Roe v Wade is merely a method of distracting the public from other civil liberties that are threatened including habeas corpus.

She finished her speech by reminding the law students of how important it is for them to contact their representatives and senators regarding judicial nominees. She used the example of how Senator Dianne Feinstein, California's senator who plays a critical role on the Senate Judiciary Committee where judicial nominations are considered, may have voted differently on some nominees if she had heard from more of her constituents on judicial nominations. Nan emphasized that hand written notes and telephone calls are influential in how a political figure decides to vote on issues.

The students were very responsive to Nan 's presentation and asked many questions about what they can do as law students and as practitioners. We want to thank Mary Louise Frampton, Director, Center for Social Justice, Boalt Hall School of Law for inviting Alliance for Justice to participate in this important lecture series.