Supreme Court Denies Motion For Reconsideration In Lapointe Case
Posted: May 11, 2015 Filed under: Appellate Law | Tags: blumberg, elson, lapointe, sua sponte 4 CommentsIn a previous post I discussed the State of Connecticut’s motion asking the Connecticut Supreme Court to reconsider its controversial decision in Lapointe v. Comm’r of Correction. I have just learned that, by order dated May 5, 2015, the Supreme Court denied that motion. The two justices who dissented from the original decision–Zarella and Espinosa–would have granted the motion for reconsideration. In short, the votes on the motion tracked the votes on the original decision.
The Arbitrariness Of Inherent Supervisory Authority
Posted: October 1, 2014 Filed under: Appellate Law | Tags: carrion, elson, inherent supervisory powers, zarella Leave a commentAs I noted in my immediately preceding post, several justices on the Connecticut Supreme Court are concerned that the court has been invoking its “inherent supervisory authority over the administration of justice” too frequently and, in so doing, may be undermining the integrity of the judicial system. Justice Zarella expressed the need for the court to adopt a single, consistent standard governing the court’s use of that authority in order to avoid “the appearance of arbitrary decisionmaking.”
I share Justice Zarella’s concerns and offer the following comparison of two cases to illustrate why they are justified.
Some Signs Of Judicial Restraint On The Horizon
Posted: September 29, 2014 Filed under: Appellate Law | Tags: blumberg, elson, inherent supervisory powers 1 CommentIn the wake of our state Supreme Court’s decisions in Blumberg Associates Worldwide, Inc. v. Brown & Brown and State v. Elson, I expressed a fairly strong opinion on this blog that those decisions reflected a growing–and troubling–trend in which the Court was increasingly invoking its “inherent supervisory powers over the administration of justice” to justify its decisions.
When I posted my opinions on this blog, I knew a number of members of the bar shared my concerns. I also suspected some members of the bench did so as well. As of last week, those suspicions are, well, no longer suspicions. It appears that at least three members of the Supreme Court–Justices Zarella and Espinosa, and Senior Justice Vertefuille–are thinking harder about just when and how the Court should invoke its inherent supervisory powers.
Appealingly Brief! 