Justice Clarence Thomas says legal precedents are not ‘the gospel’ | Clarence Thomas discusses or…

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Justice Clarence Thomas says legal precedents are not 'the gospel'

The conservative justice wants to overturn cases wrongly decided in his view.

Justice Clarence Thomas said the Supreme Court should take a more critical approach to settled precedent, saying decided cases are not "the gospel" and suggesting some may have been based on "something somebody dreamt up and others went along with."

Thomas made the comments during a rare public appearance Thursday evening at Catholic University's Columbus School of Law in Washington, D.C., just over a week before the high court starts a new term that includes challenges to several major, longstanding decisions.

The Court is poised to revisit Humphrey's Executor v U.S. — a 90-year precedent that limits a president's ability to remove members of some independent federal agencies without cause. The justices will also consider whether to overturn Thornburg v Gingles, a landmark 1986 decision governing the use of race in redistricting under the Voting Rights Act.

Clarence Thomas discusses originalism and Catholicism in CUA law event

WASHINGTON (OSV News) — U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas  discussed topics including originalism and his own Catholic faith during remarks Sept. 25 at The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law.

In remarks about the concept of “stare decisis”, or the legal doctrine where courts must follow precedent, Thomas said courts should respect precedent, adding, “Precedent should be respectful of our legal tradition and our country and our laws, and be based on something, not just something somebody wrapped up and others went along with.”

When the high court issued its 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Thomas sparked controversy by arguing in a concurring opinion that the high court “should reconsider all of this Court’s substantive due process precedents, including Griswold, Lawrence, and Obergefell,” landmark cases over contraception, same-sex relationships and marriage. 

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