The 2009 ACS National Convention included a lively discussion between six esteemed Circuit Court judges, and moderated by former New York Times Supreme Court reporter Linda Greenhouse on Saturday, June 20. Participants included Judges Marsha S. Berzon, Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals; Karen Nelson Moore, Sixth Circuit U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals; Stephen Reinhardt, Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals; David S. Tatel, D.C. Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals; J. Harvie Wilkinson, Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals; and Ann C. Williams, Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. 

Speaking on the importance of experience and judges' proper role in our judiciary, Judge Wilkinson warned, "On the bench, we're all lawyers and we're drawn from a narrow sub-stratum of the legal profession itself .... If you just sally forther under the banner of 'doing justice' you can make serious and grave mistakes."

Judge Reinhardt replied, "You can make even more serious mistakes if you don't look for justice."

The full plenary panel discussion, entitled "Improving the Courts: The Perspective from teh Bench," is now available here [2].

click the "here' to view the video