Solum on standards of review

On his Legal Theory Blog, Larry Solum (Illinois) introduces some of the problems raised by standards of review in "Legal Theory Lexicon: Standards of Review":

Law students begin to encounter the concept of a "standard of review" earlier in the first year. That's not surprising. First-year law students read appellate cases, and every appellate decision explicitly or implicitly includes a standard of appellate review--a rule that defines the relationship between the appellate and trial court. For example, the standard of appellate review on questions of law is "de novo." ...

Contexts

The phrase "standard of review" is used a variety of legal contexts.  Let's take a look at some of them.

•     Judicial Review of Jury Decisions ...

•     Appellate Review of Trial Court Decisions ...

•     Judicial Review of Legislation ...

•     Judicial Review of Administrative Agencies: The Administrative Procedures Act requires federal courts to uphold the actions of federal agencies if they are supported by "substantial evidence."  The famous "Chevron doctrine" requires federal courts to defer to an agencies interpretation of a statute, so long as that interpretation is "reasonable."  The Chevron doctrine seems to imply that administrative agencies should receive more deference on questions of law than trial courts receive under the de novo standard of appellate review. ...

This is a good, quick introduction to the subject. EMM