Will Sotomayor’s ‘Effervescence’ Change the Supreme Court?

Justice Sonia Sotomayor will introduce a new dynamic to the Supreme Court when the term begins next week, but will it change any results?

The Associated Press asks the question. Its story points out that Sotomayor is likely to vote with liberals, but could be more conservative on criminal issues because of her history as a prosecutor. She is the third new justice with the court since 2005.

Whatever her votes on the cases, her personality will be a break from the past, the story says.

“Justice David Souter never danced the salsa in public,” AP says. “Justice John Paul Stevens doesn't sing in karaoke bars. And Chief Justice John Roberts hasn't thrown out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium.

“But that was yesterday's Supreme Court. The newest justice, Sonia Sotomayor, has done all three of those things--in the less than two months since she replaced Souter on the court.

“While the Supreme Court is all about the law, personalities matter. As the court begins its new term Monday, the justices will be dealing not only with the cases in front of them but with a wild card: how Sotomayor and her effervescence may change things.”

American University law professor Stephen Wermiel notes the anticipation. “It's like when you were little and a new kid joined the class," he told AP. "There was always a little air of excitement or anticipation because you didn't know how it would change the dynamic."