Why does the court reverse decisions? | Mark Rienzi & Montse Alvarado | Constitutional Conversations
Mark Rienzi, President, and Montse Alvarado, Executive Director of Becket Law, discusses the process and importance of Supreme Court reversals.
0:00 so how did that change occur what what moved the court in those cases and it took a while so you’re not even talking about the same people changing those rulings yes so how does that work because obviously that’s a process that takes some time it takes conversation it’s it’s not just something that happens between nine folks and robes over at the Supreme Court right so it
0:21 happens over often over a long period of time sometimes it’s quick but it tends to happen when the court realizes they made a mistake initially that their predictions their factual predictions about the way the world works just weren’t so that their understanding of the language just wasn’t right so look it takes a lot for every one of us to admit hey I got it wrong right that’s
0:41 something that human beings aren’t always so great at admitting and acknowledging but they tend to do it when they realize again that that they got the doctrine wrong that they didn’t read the language the right way that they made some wrong guesses about the facts or how the world would work and that when they look at those things together they say actually we picked the wrong rule and some people some justices
1:01 even have said oh people won’t respect the Supreme Court if it ever corrects itself I always thought that was kind of silly right like we’re all human we all make mistakes institutions make mistakes I have far more respect for the court when it’s willing to say you know what that old rule that we said we blew it on the last one we’re gonna try to get it right now I think that’s the way most people approach it I don’t know if you’ve heard this phrase the mark of an
1:22 intelligent person is to change their mind when presented with new persuasive information I think that’s what’s at stake here is the reality that those are incredibly intelligent people chosen by a process that helps us choose people who are qualified and who represent knowledgeable and and reasonable beliefs
1:44 and I think that their expertise the same way that we are subject matter experts on religious liberty their subject matter experts on their con the Constitution and the process and the powers that they do have and they don’t have that is important and that is what allows them to change their mind or not or and to try to get the facts right and the law right