Associate Justice John Paul Stevens, of the U.S. Supreme Court, and Jose A. Gonzalez Jr., U.S. District Court Judge, agreed on a litany of legal issues at an on-campus discussion Monday.
Stevens and Gonzalez gave advice and commented on the legal system to about 1,000 people at the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in the inaugural event of the Marshall Criser Distinguished Lecture Series.
Two UF law professors and a third-year law student asked the two men questions submitted by law students during the "conversation."
Stevens and Gonzalez both agreed that legal opinions have gotten too long, and that it might be influenced by the introduction of computers.
"It's a lot easier to type something up than it is to write it out, especially if you have lousy handwriting," Stevens said.
When Stevens said he was a fan of footnotes, but thought they were optional reading, Larry Dougherty, the third-year law student, interjected.
"Justice Stevens, some of our professors here have us under the impression that footnotes are required reading," he said to laughter from the audience.
Sharon E. Rush, one of the two law professors asking questions, assured the audience she still wants her students to read footnotes.
Getting a little more serious, Gonzalez talked about the issue of judges' salaries, saying they are not paid what they are worth.
"We're spending billions of dollars on the war in Iraq, and we can't afford to compensate a handful of federal judges. That's crazy," he said, to perhaps the loudest applause of the conversation.
Stevens agreed and complimented Gonzalez on his eloquence.
When asked what advice they would give to the law students, Gonzalez joked he would give the same advice he's given other people: "Don't sue people that don't have any money because there's no future in it."
Stevens advised students to develop a reputation as a person of honor.
"Nothing is more important to a lawyer than his word," he said.
In one of the last questions of the event, both judges agreed on which Supreme Court justice in the nation's history they would speak to if they had the chance: Justice John Marshall.
"He was a very interesting man who lived in very interesting times, and he had a very interesting personality," Gonzalez said.
