Spencer, Miller, and McCall on

A. Benjamin Spencer , Capri M. Miller and Lesley E. McCall (University of Richmond School of Law , University of Richmond School of Law and University of Richmond School of Law) have posted The Impending Judicial Crisis: How Politics and Indifference are Destroying Our Federal Courts on SSRN.  Here is the abstract:

The federal judiciary today faces a crisis of authority. The independence of the judiciary that the Founders held so dear seems to have been compromised or threatened in many ways in recent years. The judicial nominations process has become politicized to an extent that has stymied the confirmation of judges needed to do the important work of the judiciary, judicial pay has languished at unreasonably low levels, the judiciary has been starved of the capital and human resources it truly needs to fulfill its Constitutional role, and Congress has increasingly sought to exert oversight and control over judicial decisionmaking. This Article chronicles these various challenges to the independence of the federal judiciary and offers some thoughts about how the independence of the Judicial Branch might be restored.

This is a rich, comprehensive, and illuminating paper.  Highly recommended.