Publications

Renewing Democracy After Citizens United

Citizens United shook all who care about American democracy. But even before the U.S. Supreme Court’s radical ruling handed vast new power to corporations and their allies, it was plain: our political system is broken. This publication explains what fixes are necessary to have in place in order to renew our democracy.

Authored by: Michael Waldman and Susan Liss
– 04/26/10

The Hidden Costs of Florida’s Criminal Justice Fees

Authored by: Rebekah Diller
– 03/23/10

Improving Judicial Diversity

Looking at racial diversity on the bench, report finds too few states make efforts to systematically attract racially diverse judicial applicants. Authors offer recommendations and best practices to solving this disparity.

Authored by: Ciara Torres-Spelliscy, Monique Chase and Emma Greenman | Foreword by Susan Liss
– 03/03/10

Corporate Campaign Spending: Giving Shareholders A Voice

This report proposes changes in corporate law to adapt to the post-Citizens United reality. We propose changes, based on British law, to require managers of corporations to report political spending directly to shareholders, and to obtain authorization from the same shareholders when making election-related expenditures.

Authored by: Ciara Torres-Spelliscy
– 01/27/10

Foreclosures: A Crisis in Legal Representation

This report discusses the foreclosure crisis in terms of the larger crisis of the poor’s lack of access to civil legal representation. Anecdotal and empirical evidence show that in the areas hardest hit by foreclosures, Americans are not getting the legal help they need. The report highlights the many ways lawyers can help save families’ homes from foreclosure and recommends various policy steps to be taken on the national and state levels to increase access to attorneys for the most vulnerable.

Authored by: Melanca Clark with Maggie Barron
– 10/06/09