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Supreme Court Oct. Term '06 analysis
Posted by David Hardy · 30 June 2007 07:48 PM
Pdf file here. No big surprises. Kennedy, with the swing vote, determined 100% of the 5-4s. The liberal wing could only win by getting him (in the past, they could win by getting either him or O'Connor). Kennedy tended to vote with the conservative wing about twice as often as with the liberal wing.
Number of decisions continues down -- 68 this Term, compared to 71 last Term and 107 in 1991. 72% involved reversals. Ninth Circuit was by far the target of cert. grants -- 29%, compared to runner-up 6th Circuit at 10%. Ninth Circuit got an 86% reversal rate, above the average.
A third of the rulings were 5-4s, and a quarter were unanimous.
Not that it amounts to anything at this point, but one of my law school professors was Kennedy's undergrad room-mate.