The Constitutionality of New Contempt Powers for Federal Magistrate-Judges

Abstract:     
U.S. magistrate-judges have obtained increasing responsibilities in the federal judiciary. The Federal Courts Improvement Act of 2000 gave magistrate-judges certain kinds of contempt powers that are more often associated with Article III federal judges. This paper analyzes these contempt powers and shows that at least one part of the Act may be unconstitutional.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 30

Keywords: magistrates, courts, U.S. Constitution, Article III, contempt

Accepted Paper Series