Saturday, October 01, 2022

October 2022 Judiciary News

November is coming.

Nominations, Hearings, Confirmations:

3rd Circuit:  On September 13, the Senate rejected the nomination of Arianna Freeman by a 47-50 vote.  Two D senators (Hassan and Duckworth) were absent.  On September 29, the Senate confirmed her 50-47 on a party-line vote.  This is apparently the first time that judicial nominee who was voted down has ever been confirmed under the same president.

5th Circuit:  Judge James Ho said that he will refuse to hire clerks from Yale Law School due to harassment of conservative speakers and students.  David Lat reports that some other federal judges have privately adopted the same policy.

6th Circuit:  The Senate confirmed Andre Mathis 48-47 almost 10 months after his nomination.  Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) was the only R to vote for confirmation.  This is the first Biden nominee confirmed over the objection of two home state senators.

Future:  Senator John Cornyn said that senate Rs won’t block all of President Biden’s judicial nominees if Rs win the Senate majority in November.  However, they would block nominees who are too liberal.

Nominations:
TBA

The Federal Judiciary:

Kagan:  Justice Kagan gave a speech suggesting that the Supreme Court's legitimacy is at risk.

Vacancy Declarations:  There are now 116 current and future judicial vacancies.  New vacancies over the past month are listed below.
ND-IN: Jon DeGuilio (Obama) 7/17/23 (senior)
SD-NY: Vincent Briccetti (Obama) 4/21/23 (senior)
D-CT: Sarah Merriam (Biden) 9/28 (elevated)

State Supreme Courts:

Elections:  Carrie Severino previews some competitive state supreme races in North Carolina, Illinois, Michigan, and Ohio.

Illinois:  Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Anne Burke (D) will retire November 30.  She has been on the court since 2006, and chief since 2019.  Her husband, alderman Ed Burke, "is scheduled to stand trial on federal racketeering, bribery and extortion charges".  First District Appellate Justice Joy Cunningham was appointed to replace Burke on the court.  Justice Mary Jane Theis (D) will be next chief justice.

Michigan:  Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget McCormack (D) will retire on November 22.  She was first elected in 2012 and reelected in 2020.  Her successor will be appointed by Governor Whitmer, and will face a special election in 2024.  The court currently has 4 D and 3 R nominees.

New Jersey:  Governor Phil Murphy nominated Superior Court Judge Douglas Fasciale (R) to the New Jersey Supreme Court.  This is part of a deal with the legislature, so that state senator Holly Schepisi will end her hold on Rachel Wainer Apter (D), who was first nominated in March 2021.  There is still one vacancy on the court.

North Carolina:  The North Carolina Supreme Court issued a crazy ruling purporting to overturn two constitutional amendments passed by the voters in 2018.  The amendments on voter ID and income tax limitation were put on the ballot by the legislature.  The court claimed that because the map used to elect the legislature was allegedly gerrymandered, the amendments were illegitimate.

Pennsylvania:  Chief Justice Max Baer (D) died on October 1 at age 74.  He was first elected in 2003 and became chief in 2021.  He would have been age-limited in December.  His replacement will be appointed by the governor (probably whoever is elected in November), subject to confirmation by the state senate.  There will be an election to fill the seat in 2023.

Numbers and Trivia:

10th Circuit:  On October 1, Jerome Holmes became the Chief Judge of the 10th Circuit, taking over from Timothy Tymkovich.  Holmes, who is black, was appointed by W in 2006.  Tymkovich was appointed by W in 2003.  The Presidents who appointed chief judges of the 13 appeals courts are Clinton (4), W (2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, Fed), and Obama (1, 9, DC).

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