Brevity, Speed, and Deference: An Account from the Williams Chambers

Abstract

One of the leading books on administrative law advocates judicial review for “sound governance.”Reviewing the book while sitting on the D.C. Circuit, Judge Williams posited that, even if “judges are smarter than agency heads, or have more time on their hands, or have cleverer clerks,” the proper institutional role requires more deference. Divining “sound governance” is not for courts. The Judge concluded by quoting Milton’s poem about the role of the blind: “They also serve who only stand and waite.”