Blind Umpires--A Response to Professor Resnik

In a recent law review article, Professor Resnik issued a "proclamation of change"-an attack on judicial management of civil cases, both pretrial and post-trial, that asserts that the character of the judiciary has been fundamentally altered for the worse. Through use of two hypothetical models, Professor Resnik argued that new managerial responsibilities give judges greater power and, at the same time, undermine the traditional procedural safeguards against abuse of that power. This Commentary first demonstrates that Professor Resnik's models are seriously flawed and consequently do not support the broad-based attack that she makes throughout her article. After discussing why judicial case management is essential and noting the benefits of various managerial devices, the Commentary concludes that Professor Resnik's "classical" model of judging, a system of "blind umpires," is neither desirable nor feasible.