Overview

Foregrounding religious, racialized and gendered disputes, Decision Making and Controversies in State Supreme Courts examines state supreme court decision making during controversies. Using case studies within Alabama, Louisiana, and Wisconsin, Salmon Shomade identifies and analyses the predominant factors influencing decision making in times of court contention. In this book, Shomade assesses how the justices’ interpersonal dynamics and controversial issues of religion, race, and gender impact their decision making. Specifically, the book focuses on former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore and the Ten Commandments monument crisis, Louisiana Chief Justice Bernette Johnson and her elevation dispute, and former Wisconsin Justice David Prosser and his conflicts with two female colleagues. The book contributes to the literature on decision making in state appellate courts by building upon established models utilized for assessing these courts.

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9781498542999

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In this book Salmon Shomade probes three extraordinary episodes in state supreme courts, analyzing their impact on those courts and their implications for explanation of judicial behavior. Taking a careful and creative approach, Shomade provides valuable insights on decision making in appellate courts.--Lawrence Baum, The Ohio State University

In this book Salmon Shomade probes three extraordinary episodes in state supreme courts, analyzing their impact on those courts and their implications for explanation of judicial behavior. Taking a careful and creative approach, Shomade provides valuable insights on decision making in appellate courts. -- Lawrence Baum, The Ohio State University Like Martin Shapiro before him, Shomade convincingly argues that political scientists must broaden their focus beyond the U.S. Supreme Court and include state courts if we truly want to understand courts as political institutions and test dominant models. Other scholars have studied increasingly contested judicial races as a facet of political realignment, but Shomade takes the inquiry deeper to the institution itself, exposing the significant racial and gender dimensions of political and interpersonal conflict, offering a rare intersectional approach to law and courts. - Sally Kenney, Tulane University -- Sally Kenney, Tulane University

Author Information

Salmon A. Shomade is visiting associate professor of political science and adjunct professor of law at Emory University.

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