Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Company, Inc., et al.

Issue: Whether a judge’s failure to recuse himself from a case in which he received substantial campaign donations from one of the parties violates the Due Process rights of the other party.

Judgment: Reversed and remanded, 5-4, in an opinion by Justice Anthony Kennedy on June 8, 2009.

Briefs and Documents

Merit briefs

• Brief for Petitioner Hugh M. Caperton, Harman Development Corporation, Harman Mining Corporation, and Sovereign Coal Sales, Inc.
• Brief for Respondent AT Massey Coal Co., Inc., et al.
• Reply Brief for Petitioner Hugh M. Caperton, Harman Development Corporation, Harman Mining Corporation, and Sovereign Coal Sales, Inc.
• Motion for Leave to File a Supplemental Brief and Supplemental Brief for Respondent A.T. Massey Coal Company, Inc., et al.
• Petitioner’s Opposition to Respondent’s Motion for Leave to File a Supplemental Brief

Amicus briefs

• Brief for 27 Former Chief Justices and Justices in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Public Citizens in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Justice At Stake, the American Judicature Society, Appleseed, Common Cause, the Constitutional Accountability Center, the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System, the League of Women Voters, the National Ad Hoc Advisory Committee on Judicial Campaign Conduct, the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, the Colorado Judicial Institute, Democracy North Carolina, the Fund for Modern Courts, the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, Justice For All, the League of Women Voters of Michigan, the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin Education Fund, the Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, the Michigan Campaign Finance Network, Missourians for Fair and Impartial Courts, the NC Center for Voter Education, Ohio Citizen Action, Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts, Texans for Public Justice,the Washington Appellate Lawyers Association, Washington Appleseed, Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, Chicago Appleseed, and the Chicago Council of Lawyers in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, the Campaign Legal Center, and the Reform Institute in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the Committee for Economic Development, Intel Corporation, the Lockheed Martin Corporation, PepsiCo, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., the Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana, the Illinois Association of Defense Counsel, and Transparency International – USA in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the American Bar Association in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the American Association of Justices in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for the Center for Political Accountability and the Carol and Lawrence Zicklin Center for Business Ethics Research in Support of Petitioner
• Brief for Law Professors Ronald D. Rotunda and Michael R. Dimino in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the States of Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Michigan, and Utah in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Ten Current and Former Chief Justices and Justices in Support of Respondent (reprint)
• Brief for the James Madison Center for Free Speech in Support of Respondent
• Brief for Center for Competitive Politics in Support of Respondent
• Brief for the Conference of Chief Justices in Support of Neither Party
• Brief for the Supreme Court of Louisiana in Support of Neither Party
• Motion for Leave to File Amicus Curiae Brief for the Supreme Court of the State of Louisiana Out of Time in Support of Neither Party

Certiorari-Stage Documents

• Opinion below (Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia)
• Petition for certiorari
• Supplemental brief of petitioners
• Brief in opposition
• Petitioner’s reply
• Brief of Public Citizen (in support of the petition)
• Brief of Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, et al. (in support of the petition)
• Brief of Washington Appellate Lawyers Association (in support of the petition)
• Brief of American Bar Association (in support of the petition)
• Brief of Committee for Economic Development (in support of the petition)