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Aftermath of Sotomayor nomination and appointment to Supreme Court
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Sonia Sotomayor
In the aftermath of the political hearings on the Sotomayor nomination and appointment to the Supreme Court, it is important to remember the critical role everyday lawyers play in the debate over the selection of judges and in striving to preserve the essence of fair and impartial courts.
Politicians dissect speeches, opinions and the life of the candidate, however, their methodology may make for faulty predictions and is primarily based on political concerns.
The proper focus should be whether the nominee is qualified to serve as a fair and impartial judge. Intelligence, pragmatism, knowledge of the law and the insight and skill to learn or embrace new and emerging trends of the law, ability to evaluate facts fairly and adapt the process to changing circumstances along with ethics, integrity, courage and respect for the law and the legal community are paramount.
Ethnicity per se should not come into play in a decision. The debate over the wise Latina versus the wise white man should not mean that one's experiences should make them rule differently in every case but may be a consideration in certain matters because a judge's experiences do come into play with regard to what a judge may view as reasonable and fair. Lawyers understand that taking an impartial view of the law is not the only job of a judge. They are fact finders as well and must also evaluate the effect of their judgment or legal analysis. Diverse life experiences of its members should help to enrich the decision-making process in a group setting such as the Supreme Court resulting in a final product that should be more reflective of the current society as a whole.
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