Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog

Appellate Judges Give a Window into How They Do Their Work (Seventh Circuit Day, Part 3)

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:November 7, 2025
Post category:Appellate Advocacy Judges & Judicial Process Legal Education Marquette Law School Seventh Circuit

In two noteworthy ways, the term “dialogue” was central to an event involving four judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit at Eckstein Hall on September 25, 2025.

A daylong visit by Seventh Circuit judges to Marquette Law School had multiple components. It included a morning session in the Law School’s Lubar Center in which the court heard arguments on six cases; a midafternoon program in which the judges discussed their work with an audience of Marquette law students; and an end-of-day reception which included a recognition of the Hon. Diane S. Sykes, L’84, as she completed her term as chief judge of the Seventh Circuit and assumed senior status (the next blog post in this series will say a few words about that event).

Even beyond all of this, the day included a late-afternoon CLE panel discussion program, before about 200 lawyers in the Lubar Center. It was titled “Judges on Judging: A Window into Appellate Decision Making” and moderated by Marquette Law School Professor Chad Oldfather.

That is the first reason to use the term “dialogue.” The relatively informal program offered a chance to hear collegial conversation among Chief Judge Sykes and Judges Frank H. Easterbrook, Michael B. Brennan, and Michael Y. Scudder about how they approach cases that come before them.

Lessons in the Law and Civic Life

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:November 6, 2025
Post category:Marquette Lawyer Magazine

What should be the goal of a law school? Obviously, educating students to be excellent lawyers is at the core. But the life of a law school goes far beyond the walls of a building and what happens in classrooms.

The Fall 2025 issue of the Marquette Lawyer magazine gives insights into how far the reach of a law school can and should extend. From the dignified proceedings of appellate courts to the sometimes-contentious atmosphere of school board meetings, from the harsh insides of prisons to the world of water policy, from kindergarten through twelfth-grade classrooms to enjoyable vacations—they’re all part of this issue. And there’s plenty more about life inside Marquette Law School and legal education.

The cover story of the magazine, headlined “Courts or Community Conversations?,” sets the theme. In his E. Harold Hallows Lecture at Marquette Law School on March 3, 2025, the Hon. Michael Y. Scudder, a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, discussed some of the constitutional limits on bringing issues before federal courts. He expanded on this by suggesting that constitutional limits on jurisdiction protect First Amendment interests and the value of democratic self-government, ensuring that state institutions such as city councils and school boards remain at the center of debate and decision.

The magazine offers a text of Scudder’s lecture and amplifies on his theme with two companion pieces: Professor Charles Franklin, director of the Marquette Law School Poll, provides insights from recent Marquette Law School Poll results on the involvement of people across the nation in civic life, including participation in government, religious, and community organizations. And, in an edited transcript of their conversations in person and by email, Scudder and Franklin reflect on broad issues of involvement in civic life.

Effective Appellate Advocacy: Advice from the Bench (Seventh Circuit Day, Part 2)

Post author:Melissa Love Koenig
Post published:November 5, 2025
Post category:Appellate Advocacy Judges & Judicial Process Legal Education Marquette Law School Seventh Circuit

7th Court — Professor Anne Berleman Kearney (left) moderates a question-and-answer session for students with Seventh Circuit Judges Michael Brennan, Diane Sykes, Frank Easterbrook, and Michael Scudder in Marquette Law School’s Lubar Center on Sept. 25, 2025.

What constitutes effective appellate advocacy? As part of Seventh Circuit Day in Eckstein Hall on September 25, 2025, Marquette Law School students heard answers firsthand from a group of judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. These were Chief Judge Diane S. Sykes and Judges Frank H. Easterbrook, Michael B. Brennan, and Michael Y. Scudder. (Judge Brennan became chief judge a few days later, on October 1, upon Judge Sykes’s taking senior status.) Earlier in the day, students attended oral arguments before the court in the Law School’s Lubar Center, as described by Dean Kearney in the first of this series of blog posts. Those attending the midafternoon Q&A session, moderated by Professor Anne Berleman Kearney, were primarily upper-level students taking Appellate Writing and Advocacy.

Chief Judge Sykes started the discussion by stating that briefs are 95 percent of persuasive advocacy on appeal. Oral argument then amplifies, tests, and probes the strengths and weaknesses of the parties’ arguments. First, regarding the factual history in a brief: tell the facts in a story form. Make the factual narrative efficient, readable, and quickly understandable. Judges are generalists who need to ramp up quickly on the facts and procedural history. The facts should read like a good magazine article. Second, regarding the argument: select issues carefully. Pick the most salient issues. Present a well-organized package for pivot points that may be decisive. Help a court understand why the rule advocated for is the right one.