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No. 19-309October Term 2019Decided Dec 10, 2020Updated May 23, 2026

Docket 19-309October Term 2019 (2019–2020)

Carney v. Adams

This case involved Delaware’s constitutional rules requiring partisan balance on its major courts, which an independent lawyer challenged as excluding him from judicial service unless he joined a major political party.

Case status

Decided 8-0 · December 10, 2020 · Opinion by Justice Breyer

Read the opinion (PDF)
Current stage
Decided
Latest event
Decision released Dec 10, 2020
Case Accepted
Arguments
Decision ReleasedDec 10, 2020
What it's about

This case involved Delaware’s constitutional rules requiring partisan balance on its major courts, which an independent lawyer challenged as excluding him from judicial service unless he joined a major political party. The Supreme Court held that he lacked Article III standing because he had not shown he was actually able and ready to apply for a judgeship in the near future.

Question presented

1. WHETHER RESPONDENT HAS DEMONSTRATED ARTICLE III STANDING. 2. Does the First Amendment invalidate a longstanding state constitutional provision that limits judges affiliated with any one political party to no more than a "bare majority" on the State's three highest courts, with the other seats reserved for judges affiliated with the "other major political party''? 3. Did the Third Circuit err in holding that a provision of the Delaware Constitution requiring that no more than a "bare majority" of three of the state courts may be made up of judges affiliated with any one political party is not severable from a provision that judges who are not members of the majority party on those courts must be members of the other "major political party," when the former requirement existed for more than fifty years without the latter, and the former requirement, without the latter, continues to govern appointments to two other courts?

Case path

United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit / Decision released Dec 10, 2020

Area

First Amendment

Timing

Decided December 10, 2020

The Court released its decision on December 10, 2020 without hearing oral argument.

Activity

Docket activity3
  • Brief added: Questions Presented

    May 23, 2026 | Court records

  • Opinion added: opinion

    Dec 10, 2020 | Court records

  • Brief added: Petition

    Sep 4, 2019 | Court records