FOLLOW US

On Saturday, December 31, 2022, - the last day of the year - Chief Justice Roberts released a nine page report with a focus on the court and docket information of this past year. The document released by the United States Supreme Court show that federal courts received a lower amout of docketed cases during the 2022 fiscal year than it had compared to previous years. The report, which focuses almost solely on objective data, conveniently leaves out any mention of the long-awaited ethical discussions regarding the Courts' most popularized cases.

One of the bills acknowledged in the report involved a man who is accused of attempted murder on Justice Brett Kavanaugh. The attack on Kavanaugh's life came after the Dobbs leak earlier in the year. In response, Chief Justice Roberts wrote the following,

"The law requires every judge to swear an oath to perform his or her work without fear or favor, but we must support judges by ensuring their safety," he wrote. "A judicial system cannot and should not live in fear."

As mentioned, the long-awaited report failed to address or even mention the ethical issues currently facing the court and how future violations will be addressed. Executive Director of Fix the Court, Gabe Roth, had this to say,

"The increased public scrutiny the Supreme Court is under, due in large part to its growing power but also thanks to several headline-grabbing ethics scandals, isn't going away," Roth stated. "There's no doubt [Justice] Roberts understands this; the question is what he's going to do about it, and the public deserves answers fast." A judicial system cannot and should not live in fear. Any report that doesn't reflect on the growing distrust Americans have in the court" would be a "disappointment."

On a positive note, the report reflects that in 2022 district courts saw a decrease of 20% in civil case filings, receiving 274,771 in 2022, compared to 344,567 that was seen in 2021. Additionally, the 2022 report reflects a 42% decrease from the number of civil cases that were filed in 2020.

Lastly, the report reflects a criminal case filing decrease of 8% compared to 2021 findings. The Supreme Court received 8% less cases, and the Court of Appeals saw a 6% decrease.

Editing by Goodwin Anim