U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia will speak to the public and students at UW on Thursday with limited media coverage for the event.
Scalia has called for limited coverage, not allowing any interviews with the press before or after the event. Video and audio recordings are forbidden. No cell phones or bags will be permitted inside the Fine Arts hall. Audience members also are required to bring photo identification.
“The Supreme Court, and frankly the judicial system, was never intended to be a representative body. Justices deliberate and make their decisions in private. A lot of times that shields them and allows them to evolve their opinions overtime. And so it’s not unusual and understandable for him to not want the media to cover his comments,” Andrew Garner, assistant professor of Political Science, said.
Scalia is well-known for placing limitations on media coverage due to his belief that the media does not help to educate, but instead causes confusion and gives incomplete information to the public. Scalia revealed this belief when asked why he opposed televising Supreme Court proceedings in an interview with C-SPAN’s Brian Lamb.
Caitlin Wallace, president of UW’s chapter of the Federalist Society, invited Scalia to speak at UW. The invitation was sent out over the summer and accepted in early September. Wallace believes the event to be a wonderful opportunity for those studying law and for other students.
“He has seen some of the best attorneys in the world, and some of the worst I’m sure. To be able to walk away from the event and have students say they learned what to do and what not to do from Justice Scalia, I think that will stick with them for the rest of their careers,” Wallace said
Scalia serves as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court, and he was nominated by Ronald Reagan in 1986. Scalia is the longest serving member on the Court, making him the Senior Associate Justice. In past years, Scalia has been the U.S. Assistant Attorney General and the Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
The speech is scheduled for 12:45 p.m. Thursday in the Fine Arts Concert Hall. Scalia’s appearance will include a 30-minute talk, a post-talk question and answer session and a signing of his latest book, “Reading Law: The Interpretation of Legal Texts,” in the Fine Arts lobby.
About 350 seats will be reserved for UW law students and other undergraduate programs. Seating is therefore limited and on a first come, first serve basis. Video will be streamed live to overflow rooms in the UW College of Law’s Brimmer Legal Education Center.
