The island’s First Deemster has told of his shock at the death of Antonin Scalia, the longest serving judge in the US Supreme Court.
Justice Scalia, 79, was appointed in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan and the US media is awash with stories that during this election year there will be a fierce battle over his replacement.
Deemster Doyle told Business News: ‘I was shocked to receive the sad news of the death of Justice Antonin (Nino) Scalia over the weekend. I received an electronic message notifying me of the news on Saturday evening and it took some time for the news to sink in.
‘I had the privilege and pleasure of meeting Justice Scalia a few weeks ago during his last official public engagement- a dialogue on judges and democracy at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. There were no signs that he was in poor health. I spent time with him over the weekend and during and after the dialogue on the Monday evening. Justice Scalia appeared to be in positive form and was very engaging company. It was good to debate with him. He had strong and genuinely held opinions on many areas of the law and life and expressed them in an entertaining, informative and robust way.
‘Although our judicial philosophies were very different and I did not share many of his opinions it was interesting to discuss with him numerous legal issues which arise in jurisdictions worldwide.
‘There is no doubt Justice Scalia, through his opinions and published material (including Reading Law which he wrote together with Bryan Garner), has made a significant contribution to American jurisprudence. The Supreme Court of the United States will not be the same without him.
‘Some will say that is a good thing. Others will say that is a bad thing. Whatever your views on Justice Scalia it is clear that as with his life, his death is likely to have a profound impact on American judicial and political matters.’