Ronald Glick v. Dave Edwards

OPINION

BEA, Circuit Judge: '

An old fable tells tale of a Pope, who, convinced of his own grave sin, called on his cardinals to judge him. “No, Your Holiness!” they replied. “We cannot sit in judgment over you. You must be your own judge.” And so, faced with the necessity his soul be judged, the Pope judged himself. He confessed his sin and abdicated the Holy See. He is now commemorated as a saint.

This ancient parable was recounted in a somewhat less ancient proceeding before the English Court of Common Pleas in 1430. 1 There, the court considered whether the Chancellor of Oxford could preside…