Strategy on the United States Supreme Court

Saul Brenner is a Professor of Political Science at UNC Charlotte. He has published extensively regarding fluidity in voting on the Supreme Court, strategic voting at the cert vote, and majority opinion assignment. In 2007 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Law and Courts Section of the American Political Science Association. Joseph M. Whitmeyer is a Professor of Sociology at UNC Charlotte. He has published concerning small-group processes in journals such as Social Psychology Quarterly and Sociological Theory. He has been a visiting professor at the University of Hokkaido (Japan) and at the University of Groningen (the Netherlands).

“This book challenges the widely held view that Supreme Court justices as decision makers are highly strategic. Offering theoretical arguments and using empirical evidence, Brenner and Whitmeyer provide fresh perspectives on judicial strategy. This important book deserves the attention of scholars and students who seek to understand judicial behavior.” – Lawrence Baum, Professor of Political Science, Ohio State University

• I. Introduction: 1. The legal model; 2. The attitudinal model; 3. The strategic models; II. Certiorari: 4. The losing litigant model; 5. The outcome-prediction strategy; III. The Conference Vote on the Merits: 6. Strategic voting at the conference vote; 7. Fluidity and strategic voting; IV: The Majority Opinion and Other Opinions: 8. The extent of successful bargaining over the content of the majority opinion; 9. The size of opinion coalitions; 10. At whose ideal point will the majority opinion be written?; 11. Reciprocity on the supreme court; V. The Final Vote on the Merits: 12. The separation of powers model; 13. Supreme Court decision making and public opinion; VI. Concluding Chapters: 14. Strategies in pursuit of institutional goals; 15. Summary; Appendix 1: decision making on the U.S. Supreme Court; Appendix 2: additional questions to explore.