The Progressive

NewsWire

A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release

Legal Academics Call on Justice Breyer to Retire

WASHINGTON

On Wednesday, leading law school professors and political scientists released a public statement calling on Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer to announce his intent to retire. Their statement will appear in a print ad in the New York Times on Friday.

The text of the statement reads:

It is time for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer to announce his intent to retire. Breyer is a remarkable jurist, but with future control of a closely divided Senate uncertain, it is best for the country that President Biden have the opportunity to nominate a successor without delay.

The letter is signed by the following individuals, whose academic affiliations are listed for identification purposes only:

  • Aaron Belkin, San Francisco State University
  • Niko Bowie, Harvard Law School
  • Paul Campos, University of Colorado Law School
  • Erwin Chemerinsky, University of California-Berkeley School of Law
  • Elizabeth Cohen, Syracuse University
  • David Singh Grewal, University of California-Berkeley School of Law
  • Brandon Hasbrouck, Washington and Lee University School of Law
  • Anil Kalhan, Drexel University School of Law
  • Jonathan Keller, Manhattan College
  • Daniel Kobil, Capital University Law School
  • Anthony Michael Kreis, Georgia State University College of Law
  • Daniel Morales, University of Houston Law Center
  • Samuel Moyn, Yale Law School
  • Eric Segall, Georgia State University College of Law
  • Michael Selmi, Arizona State University College of Law
  • Zephyr Teachout, Fordham School of Law
  • Jennifer Taub, Western New England University School of Law
  • Miranda Yaver, Oberlin College

On Tuesday, Demand Justice released a statement from more than a dozen progressive organizations similarly calling on Justice Breyer to announce his intent to retire. The statements follow an announcement from Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that he may attempt to block President Biden from filling a Supreme Court vacancy if Republicans regain control of the Senate in the midterm elections.

A copy of the ad can be viewed below.

Demand Justice is a progressive movement fighting to restore the ideological balance and legitimacy of the federal courts by advocating for court reform and vigorously opposing extreme nominees.