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29 A.L.I. Rep. 1 (2006-2007)

handle is hein.ali/alireporter0029 and id is 1 raw text is: VOLUME 29 -i_ i L NUMBER 1 R e t 4c rr FALL 2OO6 BLISHED BY THE AMERICAN LAW INSTITUTE The President's Letter ith Justices Breyer and O'Connor as co-chairs, The American Law Institute and Georgetown University Law Center cosponsored a confer- ence on the state of the judiciary at the end of September. The CNN television network recently aired the program Judges on Trial as part of its Broken Government series. The November elections reinforce the importance of judicial selection, impartiality, accountability and independence. On September 18, I had the privilege of delivering a Con- stitution Day lecture on judicial independence at Golden Gate University School of Law as part of the Jesse Carter Distinguished Speaker Series, which honors Jesse Carter, a 1913 graduate of the law school and California Supreme Court Justice from 1939 to 1959. I would like to share with you a condensed version of my remarks, the full text of which will be published in the Golden Gate University Law Review, Volume 37, Number 2 (2007). JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE: A CORNERSTONE OF LIBERTY It is fitting that Golden Gate University Law School honors Justice Carter with this lecture in his name. In light of his example and his independent spirit that attends this lecture, my theme is Judicial Independence: A Cornerstone of Liberty. The views I state are personal. 1. What is Judicial Independence? The term in my view connotes judges whose tenure is rea- sonably secure, who have been selected carefully (recog- nizing that systems of selection vary), and who will decide cases according to the rule of law unconstrained by political fear, fear for physical safety, or other undue pressures, and uninfluenced by the status of the parties, the threat of salary reductions, or extraneous considerations.... continued on page 2 ALl Council Reviews Recommendations on Institute Governance, Approves Drafts for Annual Meeting At the Council meeting in New York City on October 19 and 20, the Insti- tute's Special Committee on Gov- ernance presented its first report and recommended far-reaching changes in the Institute's governance policies and procedures. The Committee, which is chaired by Robert H. Mundheim, was appointed by President Michael Traynor in August 2005 to provide advice about the Institute's present governance, particularly in light of the principles the Institute is developing in its Nonprofit Organizations project and the examination of practices trig- gered by highly publicized gover- nance failures in both the commercial and nonprofit sectors. The report gen- erated serious discussion but was gen- erally very well received. Among other changes, the Committee recom- mends setting term limits for Council members, officers, and standing-com- mittee members, as well as modifying the length of their respective terms. Its proposals include detailed transition rules for persons currently holding those positions. The Committee antic- ipates that its recommended changes will make the ALI's processes and avenues to leadership more open and transparent. A set of major Bylaw amendments is expected to be pre- sented to the Council for approval in December and to the membership for approval next May. During the ALl Council's meeting in New York on October 19 and 20, Council Member John T. Subak was presented with the Institute's first- ever Distinguished Service Award. continued on page 11

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