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Special interest pressure and campaign contributions are jeopardizing the fairness of America’s state high courts.

Groups that have a direct interest in court verdicts, such as corporate executives, lawyers, and unions, have played an increasing role in judicial campaigns; they can infuse a candidate’s campaign war chest with large contributions or spend millions to finance an independent TV ad blitz.

According to Georgetown Law Journal’s “New Challenges to States’ Judicial Selection,” 89 percent of all state judges are elected, but with voter turnout sometimes as low as 13 percent, the influence of a few well-financed and influential interest groups can effectively tip the balance of an election.

Joyce grantee Justice at Stake (JAS) is working to keep state courts fair and impartial, in part through a focus on the electoral process. For example, in Minnesota, two state supreme court justice races have provided opportunities for a public education campaign and development of a judicial campaign conduct commission. In Michigan, JAS has been working with another Joyce grantee, Michigan Campaign Finance Network, on promoting and defending improved campaign disclosure laws around judicial elections. JAS is already on the ground in Wisconsin, working to counter corporations that recently challenged the constitutionality of the state’s new public financing law.

In addition to focusing on public education and reform, JAS has developed additional resources for new initiatives. In 2008, in collaboration with the Midwest Democracy Network and Joyce, JAS published A Memorandum for Midwest Court Candidates, a first-of-its-kind guide that provides information to judges and judicial candidates about appropriate and inappropriate behavior during political campaigns. Most recently, The New Politics of Judicial Elections, 2000-2009: Decade of Change, a report issued by JAS, the Brennan Center for Justice, and the National Institute on Money in State Politics, was featured in a New York Times editorial about the changing nature of state judicial elections.

“The bad news is that many Midwestern states have become crucibles for special-interest pressure on the courts. The good news is that Great Lakes reformers are national leaders in keeping courts fair and impartial,” said Bert Brandenburg, executive director, JAS. “Justice at Stake has been pleased to work with Joyce grantees across the region, and Joyce's long-term support has been indispensable for our collective success.”

Credited with a significant number of policy victories, JAS will expand its outreach and educational efforts utilizing a Joyce grant. With the renovation of its website and the addition of a daily blog, JAS will continue to emphasize the importance of communications and public information.

Click here to read more of the New York Times' coverage of fair courts and Joyce grantees.

For more information on Joyce’s Money and Politics program, please click here.