NCJ Number
141999
Journal
Judicature Volume: 76 Issue: 5 Dated: (February-March 1993) Pages: 239-243
Date Published
1993
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Many researchers believe that new justices to the U.S. Supreme Court work under a freshman effect, a distinct pattern of behavior associated with newly appointed justices; this effect is attributed to the Court's heavy workload, complexity of the arguments presented before the Court, and the Court's internal procedures. Most empirical analyses have assumed that freshmen justices are less likely than more senior colleagues to defend an extreme ideological position, and therefore often fail to join existing blocs.
Abstract
Data consisting of all plenary decisions of the Court rendered between 1921 and 1991 were examined. To test for a freshman effect in the assignment of majority opinions to new justices, the behavior of all justices during the 32 terms in which there were freshmen on the Court was examined. Freshmen and senior justices were compared in terms of the proportion of opinion assignments they received and the difficulty of their assignments. The data were also used to test the hypothesis that, while the freshman effect was strong between 1921 and 1952, it declined in the later period between 1953 and 1991. The findings showed that during the entire period between 1921 and 1991, only 24 percent of the freshmen justices failed to meet the threshold of opinion assignments. There was no significant difference between freshmen and senior justices with respect to opinion assignments. There is also no evidence to distinguish the period between 1921 and 1953 from the later era. The results do suggest that, while newer justices have received lighter workloads in recent years, their assignments are as difficult as those received by more experienced justices. 5 tables and 41 notes