Welcome to the Supreme Court of Washington Blog!
We are publishing this blog to assist citizens, practitioners, and journalists who want to follow the cases before our state’s high court.
Why a blog about a state Supreme Court? Over the last 30 years there has been a growing recognition of the importance of state courts. In fact, this is the genius of our nation’s federalist system. Very few cases make it to the U.S. Supreme Court, but thousands of cases reach their final resolution in state supreme courts. Among these courts, the Washington State Supreme Court was recently named one of the most influential in the country.
Careful analysis is especially relevant in a state where Supreme Court justices are elected. Voters usually face great difficulty deciphering a candidate’s record, qualifications, and judicial philosophy. The information we aggregate over time will allow voters to retrieve every opinion each justice has written from this point forward.
Readers can expect several regular features. We plan to review new cases the court accepts, preview oral arguments, and analyze opinions the court hands down. Special features will include a monthly audio podcast to discuss significant items, and the occasional “live-blog” to follow oral arguments in high-profile cases. Along the way, we’ll cover noteworthy news about the court and its members.
Please let us know how we can improve the site!
Thanks for putting this together! It will be a great resource for those of us who follow the court. I suggest you consider doing webinars featuring chapters from your book: "To Protect and Maintain Indivisual Rights: A Citizen's Guide to the Washington Constitution, Article 1." It would be a great teaching tool especially if the text was available on line. Again, great job and best wishes.
One more suggestion: put a link to www.tvw.org to view oral arguments
Thanks, Shawn! And great idea -- we'll get a link to TVW up.