Pro Se, Today

Raskin v. Dallas ISD addresses whether a mother can sue, pro se, in federal court on behalf of her children under the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act. Acknowledging both the practical reality that many such actions must be brought pro se, and that the federal courts ordinarily require the professionalism of trained counsel, the majority opinion deftly read the relevant statutes to let the district court apply discretion to this issue on remand.

A dissent favored an absolute rule allowing such pro se proceedings, noting, inter alia, customs about pro se representation when the Judiciary Act was adopted in 1789. (to be fair, though, women such as Ms. Raskin did not have the ability to sue about much of anything in 1789, pro se or otherwise).