Month: January 2023

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Levin Center Program on “How Courts Are Shaping Congress’ Power to Investigate”

On Wednesday, February 8, 2023, from noon to 1:30pm, Elise Bean of the Levin Center will be moderating a virtual program on “How Courts are Shaping Congress’ Power to Investigate.” The participants include former House Counsel Doug Letter, as well as law professors Emily Berman, Andy Grewal and William Ortman. (Grewal’s title should also include “tweeter extraordinaire”).

A large number of recent court decisions, including most importantly the Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. Mazars, have major implications for congressional oversight. (I am in fact working on an article with the tentative title of “How Mazars Will Shape the Congressional-Executive Informational Battlefield.”) So I am very much looking forward to hearing what these scholars and practitioners have to say.

You can register for the program here.

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Potential Roadblocks to a Congressional Investigation of the Dobbs leak

The Supreme Court recently released its report on the leaking of the draft Dobbs decision. Spoiler alert: they don’t know who did it. I have to admit I have not actually read the report, though I have read or listened to the opinions of many people who (may) have. The main takeaway for me is that the chances of a tv show about the Marshal of the Supreme Court have gone way down. Sad.

Of more interest to this blog, however, is the suggestion that Congress, specifically the House Judiciary Committee, may take up the slack and launch its own investigation of the matter. If so, this will raise some important and unresolved questions about the scope of congressional authority to probe the activities of the judicial branch. As discussed below, it may be more difficult for the committee to get information about this matter than it anticipates.

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