Fixes Raised to Shine Light on Supreme Court’s ‘Shadow Docket’

The Supreme Court’s so-called shadow docket—where justices settle disputes without explanation—is in the congressional spotlight, and a civil rights lawyer has proposed a “narrow fix” to promote public confidence.

Amir Ali told a House Judiciary subcommittee on Thursday that Congress could provide guidance to the Supreme Court about the standard to apply when overruling execution stays imposed by lower courts.

Ali, director of the MacArthur Justice Center’s Washington office, said Congress has already laid out a deferential standard for courts to apply when overturning judgments in the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, or AEDPA, and that a similar ...