Don Willett

Don R. Willett (born 16 July 1966) is a Justice on the Supreme Court of Texas.

Online and on the Bench, the ‘Tweeter Laureate of Texas’ Is All About Judicial Engagement (September 17, 2015)
Online and on the Bench, the ‘Tweeter Laureate of Texas’ Is All About Judicial Engagement (September 17, 2015)


 * Our Constitution exists to secure individual freedom, the essential condition of human flourishing. Liberty is not provided by government; liberty preexists government. It’s our natural birthright, not a gift from the sovereign. Our founders upended things and divided power to enshrine a promise, not a process.


 * I diligently self-censor and aim for carefulness,” Willett told me, “A few cardinal rules: I don’t throw partisan sharp elbows or discuss pending cases. I keep things light and upbeat. Whether you’re crafting a 140-page opinion or a 140-character tweet, judges must always be judicious.


 * Judges should always behave judicially by adjudicating, never politically by legislating. I leave policy to policymakers. They’re preeminent, but they’re not omnipotent. In other words, lawmakers decide if laws pass, but judges decide if laws pass muster. There’s a fateful difference between activist judges who concoct rights and active judges who dutifully protect the rights our Framers actually enshrined.