Ripple, Kenneth

English

Today, Notre Dame Law School honors one of its most beloved and successful sons by naming in his honor the robing room of the courtroom.  Robing Room  is really a misnomer for this chamber. It serves a variety of functions for the court, and it is no exaggeration to term it the epicenter of the court\u27s activity. If we take a few moments to review what judges do in this room and reflect on the significance of those activities in the American judicial tradition, it becomes readily apparent why it is particularly appropriate that this room be named in honor of Judge Grant

Ripple, Kenneth F.

Notre Dame Law School: NDLScholarship

Notre Dame Law SchoolNDLScholarshipJournal Articles Publications1992Remarks on the Dedication of the Robing Room inHonor of Judge Robert Allen GrantKenneth RippleNotre Dame Law School, kripple@nd.eduFollow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.nd.edu/law_faculty_scholarshipPart of the Judges CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Publications at NDLScholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal Articles byan authorized administrator of NDLScholarship. For more information, please contact lawdr@nd.edu.Recommended CitationKenneth Ripple, Remarks on the Dedication of the Robing Room in Honor of Judge Robert Allen Grant, 68 Notre Dame L. Rev. 3(1992-1993).Available at: https://scholarship.law.nd.edu/law_faculty_scholarship/233Remarks on the Dedication of the Robing Roomin Honor of Judge Robert Allen GrantHon. Kenneth F. RippleToday, Notre Dame Law School honors one of its most be-loved and successful sons by naming in his honor the robingroom of the courtroom. "Robing Room" is really a misnomer forthis chamber. It serves a variety of functions for the court, and itis no exaggeration to term it the epicenter of the court's activity.If we take a few moments to review what judges do in this roomand reflect on the significance of those activities in the Americanjudicial tradition, it becomes readily apparent why it is particularlyappropriate that this room be named in honor of Judge Grant.A judge first sees this room early in the judicial day as he orshe prepares for court. If the particular court is a tribunal onwhich the judges sit in groups, such as our appellate courts, theday begins with a handshake of all the other judicial officers pres-ent. Judges are a fiercely independent lot. (The Chief Justice hasdescribed them as independent as hogs on ice!'), and the Consti-tution commands that independence. But the traditional hand-shake at the beginning of the day reminds the judge that, despitedifferences in judicial philosophy and, indeed, in personal temper-ament, all serve one court, one law, and one country.After the judge shakes the hands of colleagues, the next stepin this room is to don the plain black robe, the judicial workingclothes. This robe is not so much a badge of office as a symbolicreminder to the judge that the decisions made while wearing thatrobe are not decisions that may be colored by matters of personalpreference or taste but must be colored only by what the lawrequires.When the day on the bench is over, the judge returns to thisroom to confer with colleagues on the cases that have just beenheard. The conversation is usually low-key, even tentative, as the* Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit & Professor of Law,University of Notre Dame; A.B., 1965, Fordham University; J.D., 1968, University of Vir-ginia; LL.M., 1972, George Washington University.1 William H. Rehnquist, Chief Justices I Never Knew, 3 HASTINGS CONST. L.Q. 637(1976).NOTRE DAME LAW REVIEWjudges attempt to discern all of the perspectives of the case. It isvitally important that, throughout this conference, each jurist keepan open mind as the other judges share their perspectives on thematter at hand. Our court refers to this initial conference as theimpression conference to emphasize the open-ended nature of thediscussion and tentativeness of the initial vote. Former Chief JudgeBailey Aldrich of the United States Court of Appeals for the FirstCircuit called this conference "the semble," again emphasizing thetentativeness of the discussion and the decision.2 Participation insuch a conference requires special skills of intellect and tempera-ment that are perhaps grounded in that elusive quality that wecall "judicial temperament," but are mostly acquired through theexperience of participation.This room, then, is where many of the most important activi-ties of the judicial process take place and where we ought to seedisplayed some of the most important characteristics of the Amer-ican judicial tradition-independence of mind and spirit, tem-pered by an openness to the truth wherever it may be found; thecapacity to put aside personality and even philosophical differencesin order to decide cases according to a rule of law; a capacity tosuppress one's ego and to participate in the collegial process ofmolding the law in conformity with the demands of the ancientdoctrines of stare decisis and precedent.The Judge we honor today has, for thirty-five years, exempli-fied these characteristics. A man of strongly held views and fierceindependence, Judge Grant is also a jurist who approaches thejudicial process with an open mind, determined to find the truthwherever it may be. Despite a long and distinguished career inAmerican politics, he manifests a profound understanding of thedifference between law and politics. Despite his independence andinsistence on principle, Judge Grant is renowned for his collegiali-ty-Today, the American judicial tradition is buffeted by manyforces that have eroded these qualities of mind and spirit whichwe have long associated with the American judiciary. We live inthe age of the new rawness in American public life. But RobertGrant's daily presence' continues to remind us that, despite ideo-2 FRANK M. COFFIN, THE WAY S OF A JUDGE: REFLEcTIONS FROM THE FEDERAL APPEL-LATE BENCH 135 (1980).3 In addition to his duties on the district bench, Judge Grant sits frequently withthe United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He is also a member of theTemporary Emergency Court of Appeals.[Vol. 68:31992] ROBERT ALLEN GRANT 5logical differences, despite mounting caseloads, despite increaseddiversity among judicial officers, the old standards of indepen-dence and collegiality are still the cornerstones of effective judicialgovernance.In honoring Judge Grant, Notre Dame reminds us all of ourbetter selves. It reminds all of us in the judiciary to follow hisexample; it reminds the judges who preside in this courtroom tolive up to his standards; it reminds the future judges of this Landwho learn their courtroom skills here that they must maintain, intheir time, the standards he maintains in ours.

Remarks on the Dedication of the Robing Room in Honor of Judge Robert Allen Grant

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Remarks on the Dedication of the Robing Room in Honor of Judge Robert Allen Grant

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