Access to the Justices' Papers: A Better Balance

摘要

But the Constitution does not belong to judges, as a mystery intelligible only to a priestly caste, and it does not belong to political activists, as a set of incendiary talking points. It belongs to the people. It is our responsibility to judge the Court, and it is our judgment that must be decisive in the end.(1)This article explores the history of Supreme Court Justices' papers and their status as private property. It discusses questions of access, the public's interest in understanding the Court and its decisions, and the effect of the Justices' papers on scholarship and popular research. Several options for encouraging greater openness are proposed.