“On Circuit” Program Brings CT Supreme Court to Yale Law School
On March 5, the Connecticut Supreme Court visited Yale Law School as part of its “On Circuit” program. The event, which was open to the public, was held in Levinson Auditorium.
“Yale Law School is honored to host the Connecticut Supreme Court, which [is] an important moment for our students to directly witness judicial arguments,” said Dean Heather K. Gerken. “The state Supreme Court does vital work. Hosting the Justices on our campus brings the lessons of a legal education to our front door.”
Chief Justice Raheem L. Mullins kicked off the proceedings with introductory remarks in which he thanked the Law School and participating attorneys for making the event possible, as well as the YLS students for coming to watch the arguments.
“We’re very excited to be in this beautiful building before an audience of law students who will hear arguments with complicated cases and compelling issues that are now before the court,” he said. “I want to emphasize that the cases we are hearing today are real cases involving real people and real issues. The outcome of these appeals is very important to the parties involved, but also important to the development of Connecticut law, because our decision in any one appeal may impact decisions in future appeals.”
The Court heard two oral arguments, with each lawyer given 30 minutes to present their case before Justices Nora R. Dannehy, Steven D. Ecker, Andrew J. McDonald, Mullins, Gregory T. D’Auria, and Joan K. Alexander.
The first argument, State of Connecticut v. Correa4, involved a criminal case during which the defendant’s cell phone was seized without a warrant and later subject to a search warrant for the entirety of its contents. The appellant, Sergio J. Correa, who was represented by assistant public defender Jennifer Smith, claimed the warrantless seizure to be unjustified and the subsequent search warrant to be in violation of his constitutional rights. Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Ronald Weller represented the State of Connecticut.
Watch the argument: State of Connecticut v. Sergio J. Correa5
The argument was followed by a Q&A session led by Leighton Homer Surbeck Professor of Law Cristina Rodríguez ’00. Members of the audience asked the participating attorneys questions about the case, including what they found to be the most difficult aspects of the case, if they catered their arguments to specific justices, and what they would consider to be a reasonable timeframe for email and text searching if presented with a similar case today.
The second argument, Johnson v. Superior Court6, involved a summary criminal contempt case in which the plaintiff in error, Gregory Johnson, alleges he was denied the right to due process and unfairly held in criminal contempt after his outburst during his writ of habeas corpus trial in 2020. Attorney James Mortimer represented Johnson before the Court, and Deputy Assistant State’s Attorney Raynald Carre represented the defendant in error, the Superior Court.
Watch the argument: Gregory Johnson v. Superior Court7
“I really enjoyed the Connecticut Supreme Court Justices’ visit to the Law School,” said Briana Payton ’27, who attended the first argument. “At the oral argument I attended, the facts and issue before the court were interesting and complex, and it was insightful seeing the different approaches the attorneys took in arguing their points, as well as the way the judges engaged with the attorneys’ presentation and arguments.”
A lunch discussion with the justices and their law clerks followed the “On Circuit” program, giving students the chance to gain information about judicial clerkships.
“The justices and clerks gave really practical advice for us to consider as potential future clerkship applicants and litigators,” said Payton. “They offered valuable insight into the benefits of clerking at state courts of last resort, and of clerking, in general.”
Safia Sayed ’25, who attended the lunch discussion, said she appreciated how the justices advocated for state courts and the important role they play in serving their local communities.
“Hearing from the justices was a great way to be connected with the local New Haven community,” said Sayed. “The justices and clerks reminded us that 90% of cases are heard in state court; while many of the cases we read in law school are federal, members of our communities routinely turn instead to the state courts,” she said.
Sayed added that the lunch discussion also emphasized the human aspect of judging.
“One former clerk mentioned that clerking illustrated how judges are ultimately people, too,” she said. “I got a sense of this from hearing the justices speak over lunch. It was abundantly clear how important they view their role as mentors to clerks.”
Established in 1986, the “On Circuit” program offers students the opportunity to hear real cases be presented before the Connecticut Supreme Court and is held at schools throughout the state.
The event on March 5 marked the third occasion of the program being held at the Law School, which previously hosted the event in 1990 and 2008.
