International Law & Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings

Supreme Court confirmation hearings exist so that senators can examine the president’s Supreme Court nominee to find out his or her background and views on the law.

Since the Supreme Court is the highest court in the United States, it is rare that international matters come up in Supreme Court confirmation hearings. But Elena Kagan’s background with international law is raising some questions from senators.

Elena Kagan & International Law

Last week, Supreme Court confirmation hearings got underway for nominee Elena Kagan. President Obama selected Kagan to replace Justice John Paul Stevens, who officially retired from the Supreme Court last week.

While Elena Kagan has no previous experience as a judge, she still has a broad legal background. She was previously the dean of Harvard University Law School. Before being nominated to be a Supreme Court justice, Kagan was serving as the solicitor general of the United States, a position that oversees and conducts litigation in the US Supreme Court.

One of the biggest changes to Harvard Law School curriculum under Kagan’s reign included replacing a required class on the US Constitution with a required class on international law. Some senators were wary of this decision and questioned Kagan’s motives behind it. If she were confirmed, would she look to international law and the decisions of foreign nations to apply to disputes in the United States?

Kagan responded that foreign law shouldn’t have precedental weight in any but the most narrow of circumstances when debating US cases. But she defended the study of international law at Harvard.

As dean of Harvard Law School in 2006, Kagan explained the decision to focus on international law in a news release: “From the beginning of law school, students should learn to locate what they are learning about public and private law in the United States within the context of a larger universe — global networks of economic regulation and private ordering, public systems created through multilateral relations among states, and different and widely varying legal cultures and systems.”

What Is the Purpose of Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings?

While a president can nominate a candidate for the Supreme Court, the Senate must confirm that the candidate is indeed a good choice to serve on the nation’s highest court. Supreme Court confirmation hearings are held, which gives senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee a chance to question the Supreme Court candidate on his or her education, experience and beliefs.

The Senate Judiciary Committee is comprised of 19 senators who are charged with approving federal judges, including Supreme Court justices, through a series of hearings. Once the confirmation hearings are over, the committee votes on whether or not the nomination should go to the full Senate. The committee gives the Senate a positive, neutral or negative report on the nominee, based on how the Supreme Court confirmation hearings went.

If the candidate proves to be worthy, a majority vote from the Senate is all the candidate needs to be appointed. Supreme Court confirmation hearings are the first step to a life tenure as a US Supreme Court justice!