Oral arguments are taking forever. Supreme Court justices have had enough | CNN Politics:
Quiet grumbling for years over how the court conducts its oral argument sessions has increasingly slipped into public view during a series of appearances by some of the justices.
“Way too long,” Chief Justice John Roberts complained recently to a conference of judges and lawyers in Pennsylvania, vowing to “look into it” over the summer.
“Too much speechifying,” Justice Samuel Alito piled on in Texas days later, according to SCOTUSblog, adding that he felt there was “too little asking real questions.”
This buries the reason this has come to the fore: Justice Jackson talks more than all male justices combined. When Alito talks of “speechifying,” Jackson is exactly who he means. And she almost always begins with some form of “I don’t understand” which, if you read her opinions and dissents, tends to be true. She seems to believe, and has said as much, that oral arguments are an opportunity for her to share her opinion. That this opinion is based in politics not law is thoroughly unhelpful.
I’m sure this drives other justices crazy, as Roberts’ refusal to rein her in has meant having to listen to legal nonsense and a lot of it. Certainly it has driven court watchers (like me) nuts. Limited oral arguments would, as a result, be a big step forward.