Gavel Grab


This blawg is dedicated to impartiality, accountability, and the war over the courts. Posts focus on judicial election campaigns, efforts to strip courts of jurisdiction, politically motivated attacks on judges and diversity on the bench.

Author: Gavel Grab features posts from the 50 partner organizations that constitute the Justice at Stake Campaign (including the ABA), as well as regular posts from Justice at Stake staff and board members.

Blawg Related Categories: Judiciary

Recent Posts from Gavel Grab


  • Judge Bybee Sets up Legal Defense Fund

    A prominent federal appeals court judge has set up a legal defense fund. Judge Jay Bybee, who sits on a U.S. Court of Appeals in Nevada, had a role in legal opinions that justified the…

  • More Dueling Analysis on NY Terror Trials

    Both sides are continuing to exchange fire in the  debate over Attorney General Eric Holder’s decision to place five 9/11 co-defendants on trial in civilian courts in New York. Some leading newspapers, including USA Today…

  • Wisc. Public Financing Bill Headed for Test?

    If Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle signs into law legislation for public financing of statewide judicial elections, could a lawsuit be on the horizon? That’s a possibility raised by a letter to Doyle from a group…

  • Column Labels W. VA Reforms ‘Good Starting Point’

    Pointing out that public confidence in  West Virginia’s judiciary has diminished in recent years, a column in the West Virginia State Journal praised the state’s Independent Commission on Judicial Reform’s cautious recommendations as “a good…

  • Critics Allege Racism in Wall Street Journal Headline

    A Wall Street Journal editorial  critical of former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Louis B. Butler Jr., a nominee for the federal bench, has itself drawn censure for its headline labeling the African American jurist as…

  • Friday Media Summary

    GUANTANAMO BAY DETAINEES/COURTS USA Today: Our view on prosecuting terror suspects: Unsettling choice for 9/11 trial has one big plus Editorial – November 20, 2009 Washington Post: Travesty in New York Charles Krauthammer – November…

  • Senate Confirms Controversial Appeals Court Pick

    U.S. District Judge David Hamilton, President Obama’s first judicial pick after occupying the White House in January, won Senate confirmation to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Thursday after a bruising and often partisan…

  • Showdown Looming on State Secrecy?

    The White House and Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee may be headed for a showdown over legislation on the state secrets privilege, according to the Politics blog of Atlantic magazine. The Committee recently passed…

  • Web Site Highlights U.S. Appeals Court Cases

    A new Web site launched by the American Bar Association is aimed at helping the news media cover important cases in the nation’s appellate courts at a time the news industry is shrinking. Media Alerts…

  • Thursday Media Summary

    JUSTICE AT STAKE Wall Street Journal: The White House Butler November 19, 2009 GUANTANAMO BAY DETAINEES/COURTS NY Times: Holder Defends Decision to Use U.S. Court for 9/11 Trial Charlie Savage – November 18, 2009 Reuters:…