The American Bar Association on Wednesday named Texas Monthly a finalist for its 2023 Silver Gavel Awards for Media and the Arts, for “The Rogue Court That Paved the Way for Roe’s Demise,” by executive editor Michael Hall. The article, which was edited by features director J. K. Nickell, profiles four judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit who are spearheading a partisan movement to redefine constitutional precedent, all of whom have roots in Texas Republican politics.
The Silver Gavel Awards recognize works in radio, television, literature, and journalism that have been exemplary in fostering the American public’s understanding of law and the legal system. Thirty finalists were selected this year from 165 entries; only one other entry in the Magazines category was selected to be a finalist.
Michael Hall, who has been a staff writer at Texas Monthly since 1997, has received numerous honors for his reporting on the courts and the criminal justice system, including from the City and Regional Magazine Association, the State Bar of Texas, and the Dallas Bar Association. He was previously selected as a finalist for the Silver Gavel Awards in 2015, for his article “The Murders at the Lake.” The winners of this year’s Silver Gavel Awards will be announced on May 24.
