The Appeal

The Appeal, by John Grisham, "centers on a small Mississippi law firm who wins a big verdict over a chemical giant, Krane, that has spread carcinogenic pollutants. Krane, fearful that this verdict, if not overturned, would set a precedent that would eventually destroy it, goes into action. It files an appeal that will find its way to the state supreme court, and hires a "dirty tricks" firm to unseat a sitting justice believe to be unfriendly. This is a viable strategy since Mississippi elects their Supreme Court justices and 69% of its voters know little about the court's candidates." This according to the comment posted by Thomas M. Loarie on Amazon.

After reading the book, a colleague of mine became upset that judges could be bought. Was the book a work of fiction or fact? In a Q&A section for the book's promotion Amazon asks "The Appeal overtly suggests that elected judges can be bought. If the novel is meant as a cautionary tale, what's next--the Presidential primaries?" Grisham answers "Why not? Over one billion dollars will be spent next year in the Presidential primaries and general election. With that kind of money floating around, anything can be bought."

In the book Judge and Jury by Eric Helland and Alex Tabarrok, they conclude in a chapter entitled The Effect of Judicial Elections on Tort Awards, "Partisan-elected judges must cater to their constituents, and they must raise campaign funds to get elected."

The Appeal is fiction. If truth is stranger than fiction, then The Appeal might just become truth.