Gash, AlisonCook, Haley2024-08-302024-08-30https://hdl.handle.net/1794/29908In recent years, the Supreme Court has found itself with record low approval ratings, negative media coverage, and Congressional calls for Court reform. The Court’s negative perception has been called a “legitimacy crisis” by the media. This raises the question, what does it mean for the Court to be legitimate or delegitimate? Further, what affects the Court’s legitimacy as an institution, and why is legitimacy important? I seek to answer these questions by examining a controversial procedural mechanism of the Court: the shadow docket. First, I explore the historical context of the non-merits docket, and the characteristics that have given the modern shadow docket its name. Next, I review prominent theories of judicial legitimacy and investigate how the shadow docket affects the Court’s legitimacy. Finally, I conclude that the shadow docket has likely played a role in the delegitimization of the Supreme Court, and it poses a greater threat to the Court’s institutional legitimacy moving forward.en-USCC BY-NC-ND 4.0Supreme CourtShadow docketlegitimacycourtsprocedural justiceThesis/Dissertation0009-0006-4122-415X