science
State Attorneys General Seek Clarification on Climate Chapter in Judicial Manual
Twenty-three state attorneys general sent a letter to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts asking about the distribution of a science reference manual that included a climate science section later removed from the online version. The letter raises questions about physical copies and a separate posting by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
May 19, 1:05 PM·1m read1 source
jurist.orgAudio version
Tap play to generate a narrated version.
A coalition of 23 state attorneys general sent a letter dated May 13 to the director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts regarding the Federal Judicial Center’s Reference Manual on Scientific Evidence. The letter questions the status of a climate science chapter that was removed from the online version of the manual after earlier distribution to federal judges.
Officials from the Federal Judicial Center described the chapter as omitted from its website.
The attorneys general noted that physical copies of the manual may still contain the chapter and asked whether any hard copies distributed through official channels include the section. They also pointed to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine continuing to post the chapter on its site.
The letter states that the differing positions create uncertainty for judges and litigants about which version of the manual is authoritative. It asks the Administrative Office to notify the Judicial Conference of the United States about the situation.
The Federal Judicial Center serves as the research and education arm of the federal judiciary and produces the manual to assist judges handling scientific evidence in cases.
