America’s Worst Appeals Court – Robert G. Natelson

America’s Worst Appeals Court – Robert G. Natelson

At national academic conferences, law professors sometimes play a variant of a game of “one-downsmanship.” It’s a contest to determine whose state supreme court is the worst. It is sad to report that when I was on the faculty at the University of Montana law school, I always won those contests. While all state high courts have their flaws, the Montana panel has long suffered from uniquely serious deficiencies. My conclusion is based on more than…