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An Update to the Squire State Court of Last Resort Professionalization Index

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 March 2021

Peverill Squire  and
Jordan Butcher Open the ORCID record for Jordan Butcher [Opens in a new window]
Peverill Squire
Affiliation:
Department of Political Science, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA
Jordan Butcher*
Affiliation:
Department of Political Science Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, AR
*
Corresponding Author: Jordan Butcher, Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, AR Email: jbutcher@astate.edu
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Abstract

The current version of the Squire state court of last resort professionalization index is regularly used in studies of state courts. We have updated the index for 2019, producing a second and more recent index. Given the relative stability between this index and its predecessor, it is unlikely that many findings will change. During the 15 years that lapsed between the first index and the more recent one, little changed in most states, while reforms in a few places substantially shifted the relative standing of their court of last resort. It seems unlikely that the nation will experience any sweeping reform movements impacting state courts of last resort across the board. The more likely scenario is the sort of idiosyncratic changes impacting a few courts that were witnessed over the last decade and a half. Thus, looking to the future, it may be prudent to update the index every 5–10 years to capture any notable alterations.

Keywords

state/localjudicial politicscourtscourt professionalization
Type
Original Article
Information
State Politics & Policy Quarterly , Volume 21 , Issue 3 , September 2021 , pp. 326 - 333
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the American Political Science Association

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