judgesonmerit.org

Some friends in the corporate world share our concerns about the role of money in judicial elections. Merck VP, Charles R. Grezlak, told the Center for Political Accountability, a nonprofit group working towards greater transparency in political spending, that the pharmaceutical company would no longer make donations to state supreme court candidates.

Merck’s decision came partly in response to the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Caperton v. Massey. Writing for the majority, Justice Kennedy said:

We conclude that there is a serious risk of actual bias—based on objective and reasonable perceptions—when a person with a personal stake in a particular case had a significant and disproportionate influence in placing the judge on the case by raising funds or directing the judge’s election campaign when the case was pending or imminent.”

In spite of the Court’s strong warning that campaign contributions may jeopardize a litigant’s right to a fair trial, judicial fundraising is a necessary evil in states that continue to elect their judges through partisan elections.

Merck’s decision to remove itself from this politicized arena is a welcomed step in the direction of greater judicial accountability. Merck’s leadership on this issue may encourage other major companies to follow suit by extracting themselves from the money game as well. Businesses, as well as all other potential litigants, should not feel pressured to compete for justice with their checkbooks.

In Pennsylvania, campaign spending on judicial elections has skyrocketed. Notable (and notorious) was this year’s Supreme Court election in which the two candidates raised well over three million dollars combined. Pennsylvanians need to take a hard look at where all this money is coming from and how it is impacting the fairness of our courts.

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