I always love it when I see the skills and concepts I try to
teach being applied in the real world. One of the key messages I try to impart with 1L’s is the obligation to
form an opinion about the cases they read. Ruth McKinney does a wonderful job
in Reading Like a Lawyer explaining
to students why they need to dialogue with cases they read and honor their
opinions of decisions they read. This
skill is being applied in real life; two prominent federal judges are
expressing their disagreement with the holding in Columbia v. Heller,
the D.C. gun case. Judges Wilkinson and
Posner have expressed their discontent not only with the holding, but
specifically with the reasoning used by Justice Scalia. This presents a fabulous teaching moment; two
lower federal court judges are openly disagreeing with the reasoning of a
Supreme Court Justice. This disagreement
illustrates that it is okay to disagree with people “above” you. Most 1L’s
don’t know the outstanding reputations of Judges Wilkenson and Posner; I know
many people in the legal community would agree neither judge is less
knowledgeable than the current Supreme Court justices. Regardless of your opinion of the people
involved, this disagreement presents a valuable teaching moment for students
reluctant to disagree with holdings. (RCF)
York Times, October 20, 2008.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/21/washington/21guns.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink
