Closed Chambers
Encyclopedia
Closed Chambers: The Rise, Fall, and Future of the Modern Supreme Court is a 1998 book by Edward Lazarus
, who served as a law clerk
for U.S. Supreme Court
Justice Harry Blackmun
during the October Term 1988. Lazarus combines his reflections as a clerk with a substantial body of research to describe the collapse in comity between Justices - and particularly clerks - at the Supreme Court. The book is noted both for its extraordinary inside access to internal Supreme Court deliberation and its arguably balanced account of the controversy surrounding many high-profile Supreme Court decisions on the death penalty, civil rights, and abortion.
in seeing behind almost every repeat habeas petition the LDF's unwavering desire to abolish the death penalty, a position that even the moderate justices had rejected. If true, this would mean that an organization that set out to abolish the death penalty actually succeeded in making it more capricious, less well-overseen and more commonly used.
Lazarus also argues that a tightly-organized network of conservative law clerks exercised substantial power over the Justices during his time as a law clerk.
, Judge Alex Kozinski
wrote a detailed criticism of the book as rife with factual errors, unreliable research methods, and strong biases in its analysis and tone.
Closed Chambers met with a wave of controversy over Lazarus's voluminous disclosure of the internal deliberations of the Supreme Court, which critics argued was confidential and protected by an oath taken by the law clerks. Similar controversy greeted the publication of Bob Woodward
and Scott Armstrong
's The Brethren
, which relied on interviews with former clerks and Justices, two decades prior.
Lazarus's book was the first to reveal many formerly unknown facts about Supreme Court's decision-making, such as the fact that Justice Anthony Kennedy
changed his vote during consideration of the 1992 abortion case Planned Parenthood v. Casey
.
episodes "The Car Salesmen" and "Thor" Larry David
is seen reading Closed Chambers.
Edward Lazarus
Edward Lazarus is a lawyer and writer who was named Chief of Staff of the Federal Communications Commission on June 29, 2009. He went to the FCC from the Los Angeles office of the law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld....
, who served as a law clerk
Law clerk
A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person who provides assistance to a judge in researching issues before the court and in writing opinions. Law clerks are not court clerks or courtroom deputies, who are administrative staff for the court. Most law clerks are recent law school graduates who...
for U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
Justice Harry Blackmun
Harry Blackmun
Harold Andrew Blackmun was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1970 until 1994. He is best known as the author of Roe v. Wade.- Early years and professional career :...
during the October Term 1988. Lazarus combines his reflections as a clerk with a substantial body of research to describe the collapse in comity between Justices - and particularly clerks - at the Supreme Court. The book is noted both for its extraordinary inside access to internal Supreme Court deliberation and its arguably balanced account of the controversy surrounding many high-profile Supreme Court decisions on the death penalty, civil rights, and abortion.
Summary
The subject matter is familiar, but Closed Chambers argues that the breakdown had less to do with Warren Court precedents or abortion (the latter being exceptionally divisive, but rarely on the court's docket), but rather a fundamental split over the death penalty. This split was later widened over disagreements concerning civil rights litigation. Lazarus presents the zealotry of the abolitionists at the Legal Defense Foundation, compounded by the actions of Justices Marshall and Brennan, as a major and mounting frustration even for the moderate Justices of the court. This frustration eventually lead even the center of the court - Justices White and Powell - to align with Justice William RehnquistWilliam Rehnquist
William Hubbs Rehnquist was an American lawyer, jurist, and political figure who served as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States and later as the 16th Chief Justice of the United States...
in seeing behind almost every repeat habeas petition the LDF's unwavering desire to abolish the death penalty, a position that even the moderate justices had rejected. If true, this would mean that an organization that set out to abolish the death penalty actually succeeded in making it more capricious, less well-overseen and more commonly used.
Lazarus also argues that a tightly-organized network of conservative law clerks exercised substantial power over the Justices during his time as a law clerk.
Criticism
In the January, 1999, edition of the Yale Law JournalYale Law Journal
The Yale Law Journal is a student-run law review affiliated with the Yale Law School. Published continuously since 1891, it is the most widely known of the eight law reviews published by students at Yale Law School...
, Judge Alex Kozinski
Alex Kozinski
Alex Kozinski is Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, an essayist, and a judicial commentator.-Biography:...
wrote a detailed criticism of the book as rife with factual errors, unreliable research methods, and strong biases in its analysis and tone.
Closed Chambers met with a wave of controversy over Lazarus's voluminous disclosure of the internal deliberations of the Supreme Court, which critics argued was confidential and protected by an oath taken by the law clerks. Similar controversy greeted the publication of Bob Woodward
Bob Woodward
Robert Upshur Woodward is an American investigative journalist and non-fiction author. He has worked for The Washington Post since 1971 as a reporter, and is currently an associate editor of the Post....
and Scott Armstrong
Scott Armstrong (journalist)
Scott Armstrong is the current director of Information Trust, a former journalist for the Washington Post, and founder of the National Security Archive...
's The Brethren
The Brethren (Bob Woodward book)
The Brethren is a 1979 book by Bob Woodward and Scott Armstrong. It gives a "behind-the-scenes" account of the United States Supreme Court during Warren Burger's early years as Chief Justice of the United States....
, which relied on interviews with former clerks and Justices, two decades prior.
Lazarus's book was the first to reveal many formerly unknown facts about Supreme Court's decision-making, such as the fact that Justice Anthony Kennedy
Anthony Kennedy
Anthony McLeod Kennedy is an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Since the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, Kennedy has often been the swing vote on many of the Court's politically charged 5–4 decisions...
changed his vote during consideration of the 1992 abortion case Planned Parenthood v. Casey
Planned Parenthood v. Casey
Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, 505 U.S. 833 was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in which the constitutionality of several Pennsylvania state regulations regarding abortion were challenged...
.
Popular culture
In the Curb Your EnthusiasmCurb Your Enthusiasm
Curb Your Enthusiasm is an American comedy television series produced and broadcast by HBO, which premiered on October 15, 2000. As of 2011, it has completed 80 episodes over eight seasons. The series was created by Seinfeld co-creator Larry David, who stars as a fictionalized version of himself...
episodes "The Car Salesmen" and "Thor" Larry David
Larry David
Lawrence Gene "Larry" David is an American actor, writer, comedian and producer. He is best known as the co-creator , head writer, and executive producer of the television series Seinfeld from 1989 to 1996, and for creating the 1999 HBO series Curb Your Enthusiasm, a partially improvised sitcom in...
is seen reading Closed Chambers.