For the next couple of weeks, we’ll be taking a brief time off from our look at the Court’s oral arguments in order to look at an issue we’re studying over on California Supreme Court Review – what can be inferred from the average time a case remains pending at the Court, from the allowing
Does a More Active Bench Indicate That the Court Will Reverse in Criminal Cases?
Yesterday, we established that all things being equal, the Illinois Supreme Court has tended to ask somewhat more questions in civil cases where they reverse than in cases where they affirm. Today, we address the Court’s criminal cases from 2008 to 2016.
Our database consists of 160 affirmances in criminal cases and 188 reversals. Once
Does a More Active Bench Indicate That the Court Will Reverse in Civil Cases?
For the past few weeks, we’ve been studying the Illinois Supreme Court’s oral arguments between 2008 and 2016. This week, we address a new question: is there a correlation between the result – reversal or affirmance – and the total number of questions? Or to put it in less mathematical language, does an active bench
Does a Dissent at the Appellate Court Mean a More Active Bench at Oral Argument in Criminal Cases?
Yesterday, we determined that a dissent below, all things being equal, will lead to at least a slightly more active oral argument for appellees. The data for appellants is more variable – the averages are virtually identical, but the numbers vary widely from case to case. So what’s the answer for criminal cases?
Between 2008
Does a Dissent at the Appellate Court Mean a More Active Bench at Oral Argument in Civil Cases?
For the past several weeks, we’ve been comparing the level of questioning at the Court in civil and criminal cases to various facts about the underlying case, searching for factors which explain how active the Court is at oral argument. This week, we turn our attention to a new possibility: is a dissent at the
How Does the Area of Law Impact the Level of Questioning in Criminal Cases?
Yesterday, we analyzed how the area of law impacted the total volume of questions during oral argument in civil cases between 2008 and 2016, as well as analyzing how many questions one could expect in the most common areas of law in future cases. Today, we turn our attention to the Court’s criminal docket.
The
How Does the Area of Law Impact the Level of Questioning at Oral Argument?
For the past several weeks, we’ve been comparing the data on the number and sequence of the Illinois Supreme Court’s questions at oral argument to various variables, searching for possible predictors of particularly active oral arguments. This week, we’ll be asking whether the area of law involved in a case impacts the level of questioning.
How Likely Is It That the First Question in a Criminal Case Comes From a Justice Writing the Majority, a Concurrence or a Dissent?
Yesterday, we looked at the likelihood that the first question to each side at oral argument in civil cases came from a Justice who would write an opinion – either the majority, a special concurrence or a dissent. Today, we turn our attention to the Court’s criminal cases between 2008 and 2016.
Beginning with appellants,
How Likely Is It That the First Question in a Civil Case Comes From a Justice Writing the Majority, a Concurrence or a Dissent?
Today, we turn our analysis of the Illinois Supreme Court’s oral arguments between 2008 and 2016 to a new question: how likely is it that the Justice who asks the first question in a civil case is writing an opinion?
In Table 433 below, we report the percentage of instances in civil cases in which
Do More Questions at Oral Argument Mean a Longer Majority Opinion (Part 2 – Criminal Docket)?
Yesterday, we investigated whether a more active bench at oral argument in civil cases suggested that the majority opinion would be longer. Today, we look at the same question on the criminal side of the docket by tracking the correlation between total questions and the length of the majority opinion.
We report the data for