Adam Sopko, Staff Attorney Published: April 12, 2024 Link to PDF Introduction In recent years, legal commentators have analyzed—and often criticized—the U.S. Supreme Court’s “shadow docket.”[1] Rulings on this docket proceed without the usual, public-facing …
Research & Explainers
Research Note: History of Wisconsin’s Joint Committee on Finance’s Veto Powers
PDF Available Here Wisconsin’s Joint Committee on Finance (JCF) has a range of statutorily conferred powers, including powers to veto executive-branch actions.
Explainer: Proposed Wisconsin Constitutional Amendments on Election Administration
Emily Lau, Staff Attorney PDF Available Here This April, Wisconsin voters will be asked to vote on two proposed amendments to the Wisconsin Constitution. To amend the Constitution, legislators in two successive legislative sessions must …
Explainer: Status of Partisan Gerrymandering Claims Across the Country
Harry Isaiah Black, Staff Attorney PDF Available Here Every 10 years, following the federal census, states are required to redraw their congressional and legislative district maps. In the majority of states, the duty to redistrict …
Supreme Court of North Carolina: 2023 Review and 2024 Preview
Emily Lau, Staff Attorney PDF Available Here The North Carolina Supreme Court had an eventful 2023. Its recent decisions reflect changes in the court’s view of its own role, its relationship with the other branches …
Explainer: Shaping Democracy: 2023’s Statewide Ballot Measures and What Lies Ahead in 2024
Derek Clinger, Senior Staff Attorney PDF Available Here The past year saw a continued trend of increased interest in direct democracy, with the highest number of statewide ballot measures for an odd-numbered election year in …
Direct Democracy in the States
This Report surveys current state laws affecting direct democracy, with an emphasis on those relating to voter participation and understanding. For instance, what information appears on the ballot, and who prepares it? What standards exist, …
White Paper: Unpacking State Legislative Vetoes
Derek Clinger, Senior Staff Attorney Professor Miriam Seifter, Faculty Co-Director Published: October 13, 2023 Last Updated: December 20, 2024 PDF Available Here Table of Contents Introduction I. Models of State Legislative Oversight of Agency Rulemaking …
Explainer: State Constitutional Standards for Adjudicating Challenges to Restrictive Voting Laws
Emily Lau, Staff Attorney PDF Available Here State constitutions are distinct from the U.S. Constitution in many ways—not least of which is their commitment to popular sovereignty, majority rule, and political equality.[1] State courts have …
Research: Materials on 1853 Impeachment of Judge Levi Hubbell
In 1853, Levi Hubbell, Judge of Wisconsin’s Second Circuit Court and Associate Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, became the first—and still only—judge in Wisconsin history to have articles of impeachment filed against him by …