Strengthen Our Courts
Our courts should be bulwarks to protect civil rights, democratic values, and the rule of law, but more and more, the promise of even-handed justice is at risk. We are fighting back with bold solutions for judicial reform.
Ethics scandals on the Supreme Court have laid bare a system in which justices wield tremendous power for decades with little accountability, and the Court’s rulings are increasingly unmoored from broadly held values and the principle of judicial restraint. In the states, judicial elections are awash in money, and judges regularly hear cases involving major contributors to their campaigns. Neither the state nor federal courts reflect the diversity of the communities they serve, while politically motivated attacks on judicial independence have become the norm. The Brennan Center advocates for reforms to the Supreme Court, lower federal courts, and state courts and works to realize a fair and inclusive judicial system.
Stay up to date