THE FEDERALIST SOCIETY
Senior Counsel Section
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I
n May, attorney Morgan
Streetman, the president
of the Tampa Bay Lawyers
Chapter of the Federalist
Society, spoke at the Senior
Counsel Luncheon to over 30
people, including United States
District Court Judge Elizabeth
Kovachevich; Second District
Court of Appeals Judges Edward
LaRose and John Badalamenti;
Hillsborough County Circuit
Court Judges Edward Bergman
and Bernard Silver; and County
Court Judge Michael Williams.
The Federalist Society was
founded in 1982 at the University
of Chicago Law School and Yale
Law School under the leadership
of Professor Antonin Scalia at
Chicago and Professor Robert
Bork at Yale. Today, there is a
Federalist Society Student Chapter
at every law school in Florida.
There are also Lawyers Chapters
in Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando,
Tallahassee, and here in
Tampa Bay.
At the May Senior Counsel
luncheon, Streetman discussed
the organization and its history.
The Federalist Society for Law
and Public Policy is a group of
conservatives and libertarians
interested in the state of legal order
in the United States. The Society
is founded on three core principles:
the state exists to preserve freedom;
the separation of governmental
0,AA?>B:395
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The judiciary,
powers is
on the
central to our
contrary, has
Constitution;
no influence
and that it is
over either
emphatically
the sword
the province
or the purse;
and duty of
no direction
the judiciary
“The judiciary has neither
either of the
to say what
force nor will, but
strength or
the law is, not
merely judgment.”
of the wealth
what the law
of the society;
should be.
— Alexander Hamilton
and can take
The
no active
Federalist
resolution
Society
whatever.” 2
contends, as
Streetman explained, that the
Thus, Hamilton explains that
American legal system is best
the judiciary has neither force
understood in accordance
nor will, but merely judgment.
within a textualist or originalist
The Tampa Bay Lawyers
interpretation of the U.S.
Chapter of the Federalist Society
Constitution. Referring to the
was founded in 1996. Their
Federalist Society, Professor Samuel
luncheons have featured speakers
Issacharoff of New York University
such as Supreme Court justices,
School of Law, said, “They believe
professors of law, government
that the text of the Constitution
attorneys, and other legal experts.
strictly limits what Congress and
One need not be a member to
judges can do. So they embrace
attend the luncheons. Additional
a whole series of doctrines that
information on the organization
say Congress can’t do anything
is available at: www.fed-soc.org/
unless it’s specifically authorized
chapters/detail/tampa-bay-
in the Constitution. And then
lawyers-chapter.
administrative agencies can’t do
1 The Conservative Pipeline to
anything unless Congress has
specifically authorized it by law.” 1
the Supreme Court,” Jeffrey Toobin,
Streetman quoted directly from
The New Yorker, Annals of the
“The Federalist No. 78,” written by
Law (April 17, 2017), available at
Alexander Hamilton under the
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/
pseudonym “Publius,” to describe
2017/04/17/the-conservative-pipeline-
the legislative, executive, and
to-the-supreme-court.
2 “The Federalist No. 78, The
judiciary powers as outlined in the
U.S. Constitution:
Judiciary Department,” Alexander
“The Executive not only
Hamilton, Independent Journal
dispenses the honors, but holds
(June 14, 1788), available at
the sword of the community.
http://www.constitution.org/fed/
The legislature not only
federa78.htm.
commands the purse, but
prescribes the rules by which
the duties and rights of every
Author: Thomas Newcomb Hyde -
citizen are to be regulated.
Attorney at Law
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