Cardozo Law Review Volume 47 Symposium: Umpires or Pinch Hitters?

"Judges are like umpires. Umpires don’t make the rules, they apply them. The role of an umpire and a judge is critical. They make sure everybody plays by the rules, but it is a limited role. Nobody ever went to a ball game to see the umpire."

In the opening statement to his confirmation hearing, John Roberts famously likened his role as a judge and future Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to that of an umpire, whose job is to call balls and strikes, nothing more.

Twenty years later, we have a plethora of decisions that call this narrow characterization into question — Citizens United, Shelby County, Dobbs, Loper-Bright, and Skrmetti, to name a few. Then, the rise of unitary executive sympathies, selective originalism, and a notable increase in use of the shadow docket. Is this Supreme Court truly an umpire calling balls and strikes, as John Roberts called it, or is it a pinch hitter, creating strategic advantage for achieving preferred policy goals?

Join Cardozo Law Review for a breaking Symposium discussing the various ways democracy has been shaped and changed since John Roberts was appointed as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

PANEL ONE — Whose History and Tradition? The Roberts Court on Privacy Rights and Personal Autonomy (9:30am-10:45am)

PANEL TWO — Throwing Out the Umbrella During a Rainstorm: The Roberts Court's Impact on Gerrymandering, Voting Rights, and the Democratic Process (11:00am-12:15pm)

Lunch (12:15pm–1:30pm)

PANEL THREE—Lowering the Guardrails? The Supreme Court’s Role in Shaping Government Oversight (1:30pm-2:45pm)

PANEL FOUR—Supreme Secrecy: The Shadow Docket, Selective Originalism, and the Erosion of the Court’s Internal Structure Under Roberts (3:00pm–4:15pm)

Keynote Remarks from Professor Jamal Greene (4:30pm–5pm)

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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