Fix the Court

Fix the Court is an advocacy group that seeks reform of the U.S. federal court system. The group lobbies for term limits for members of the U.S. Supreme Court,[1] for streaming live audio and video of the court's oral arguments,[2] and for publicizing potential conflicts of interest among justices. Fix the Court submitted multiple Freedom of Information Act requests related to the Supreme Court nominations of Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, as well as for all 25 people that former President Donald Trump put on his shortlist of potential Supreme Court nominees.[3]

When Brett Kavanaugh was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court, Fix the Court bought several Internet domain names related to Kavanaugh and redirected them to websites including End Rape On Campus, the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, and the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network. Fix the Court's executive director, Gabe Roth, said he purchased and redirected the websites because he believed the sexual assault allegations made by Christine Blasey Ford against Brett Kavanaugh and by Anita Hill against Clarence Thomas.[4][5]

Fix the Court was initially funded by the New Venture Fund.[6] Since February 2021, Fix the Court has been registered with the Internal Revenue Service as an 501(c)(3) nonprofit.[7] However, Fix the Court did not initially file tax forms with the IRS until the Washington Examiner contacted Gabe Roth and asked for the group's financial disclosures.[8] Roth accidentally leaked investigative reporter Gabe Kaminsky Fix the Court's donors for 2021 and 2022, noting in an interview with the outlet, "I mean, basically, I've tried to donate money; I have failed. I tried to raise money; I have failed. I have only two foundations that give me money, and if their names become public, they're never going to talk to me again, and Fix the Court is over. My screwup this morning probably cost me my job."[9]

Fix the Court failed to disclose lobbying in 2021 and 2022 on tax forms and was accused in an IRS complaint of violating federal law.[10] The group later admitted this error and fixed its 2022 tax forms to include its lobbying activities, the Washington Examiner reported. The Wall Street Journal published an op-ed in August 2023, titled, ‘"Fix the Court’ Should Fix Itself."[11]

References
  1. Ingraham, Christopher (February 13, 2016). "Why it's time to get serious about Supreme Court term limits". Washington Post. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  2. Wolf, Richard (April 30, 2020). "Supreme Court makes historic change to hear oral arguments over the phone and stream them live". USA Today. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  3. Mencimer, Stephanie (July 18, 2018). "Judicial Watchdogs Are in Court to Make Brett Kavanaugh's Entire Record Public". Mother Jones. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  4. Black, Shelby (October 10, 2018). "Fix The Court Bought Brett Kavanaugh's Name As A Website To Help Sexual Assault Survivors". Elite Daily. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  5. Lieu, Johnny (October 10, 2018). "Someone bought BrettKavanaugh.com, which links to sexual assault survivor resources". Mashable. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  6. Wolf, Richard (November 12, 2014). "At Supreme Court, secretiveness attracts snoops". USA Today. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  7. "IRS Determination Letter". IRS.gov. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  8. "Supreme Court 'transparency' charity director panics over IRS donor leak: 'I just f***ed up'". Washington Examiner. 2023-05-17. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
  9. "Supreme Court 'transparency' charity director panics over IRS donor leak: 'I just f***ed up'". Washington Examiner. 2023-05-17. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
  10. "Supreme Court 'ethics' group likely failed to disclose lobbying, experts say". Washington Examiner. 2023-07-27. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
  11. Board, The Editorial (2023-08-08). "Opinion | 'Fix the Court' Should Fix Itself". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
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