News & Updates

Of the four candidates vying for a supreme court seat in the March Democratic primary, the incumbent and her appellate court challenger received the highest marks from Chicago-area bar associations that rate judges. The other two candidates were found “not qualified” and “not recommended” in various polls.

A Democratic legislator's resolution to remove Justice Michael Gableman from the court for alleged violation of state law and the code of judicial conduct has received little support, attracting only four co-sponsors.

Though they have been proponents of electing judges in the past, two justices are calling for moving to some form of merit selection for the state's supreme court. Justices Crooks and Bradley cited concerns about the surge in spending on supreme court races, as well as the lack of meaningful disclosure and recusal rules.

A divided supreme court altered its rules to allow chief justices to serve successive two-year terms, and up to eight years, and to be selected on criteria in addition to seniority. The revisions are based on the recommendations of a judicial branch study group.

Governor Gregoire encouraged trial court applicants and candidates for reelection to submit themselves to being rated by minority bar associations. In making judicial appointments, the governor consults minority bar ratings as well as traditional bar ratings.

A judge under indictment for soliciting a bribe from a judicial applicant (among other charges) resigned from the bench to avoid disciplinary proceedings regarding offensive comments he made about gay people.

The House of Delegates gathering at the American Bar Association's Midyear Meeting in New Orleans covered court funding, civics education, attacks on judges who make unpopular decisions, and other challenges in the system and the profession.

Though he believes he has enough votes to move the proposal out of committee, a Republican legislator agreed to postpone until the end of the session consideration of his bill calling for popular election of all judges. In January, the Republican governor, senate speaker, and house speaker jointly proposed a constitutional amendment establishing merit selection for appellate judges.

U.S. Senator and possible 2015 gubernatorial candidate David Vitter urged the state legislature to examine the current process for choosing judges—i.e., partisan elections—and consider moving to merit selection.

In his State of the Union address, President Obama called for judicial nominees to get an up-or-down vote after 90 days, regardless of whether they could overcome a filibuster.

After a standoff over judicial appointments brought senate business to a halt, lieutenant governor and 2013 gubernatorial candidate Bill Bolling called for the creation of a bipartisan judicial selection commission. (Virginia is one of two states where the legislature appoints judges.) As a result of the November 2011 elections, the senate is evenly split between Democrats and Republicans.

Justice Michael Gableman rejected requests that he recuse himself from three cases involving a law firm that defended him for free against an ethics violation charge. Gableman noted that justices should recuse  themselves only when they believe they cannot act impartially or when it might appear that they cannot do so.

A proposal to amend the constitution to establish merit selection and retention for appellate judges and justices met with support and opposition from both Republicans and Democrats in the legislature. The proposal would make constitutional a selection system that is currently statutory.

The three candidates competing to be the Republican candidate for chief justice of the supreme court raised nearly $150,000 in January for the March primary campaign.

According to campaign finance records, two trial court judges made $100 contributions to an anti-abortion PAC after hearing cases involving abortion-related issues. The two judges serve in Sedgwick County, where judges are chosen in partisan elections, and are up for reelection this fall.

The governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house jointly proposed a constitutional amendment that would establish a merit selection and retention system for the state’s appellate judges. If approved by the legislature, the measure would go on the ballot in 2014. (A merit selection and retention system is currently in place, but it is statutorily based.)

On February 6 at Noon PST, Dean Erwin Chemerinsky and Professor Rick Hasen (University of California at Irvine School of Law) and Professor James Sample (Hofstra Law) will discuss the impact of Citizens United on judicial elections.

Two Republican legislators proposed a bill that would require attorneys to disclose to the judge and all parties to a lawsuit any campaign contributions of more than $500 made to that judge by the attorney or the attorney’s firm within the past five years. The bill would also require the judge’s recusal upon a motion filed by a non-contributing party.

The District of Columbia Judicial Nominating Commission recommended three public sector attorneys to fill a vacancy on the D.C. superior court. The White House has 60 days to select a nominee, who then appears before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs for confirmation proceedings.

Christie nominated two men who would bring greater diversity to the state’s highest court—the first openly gay justice and the first Asian-American justice. The nominees must be confirmed by the Democratic-controlled senate.