News & Updates

President Obama’s efforts to fill judicial vacancies have been complicated by the American Bar Association’s ratings of potential nominees. The ABA’s judicial vetting committee has rated 14 of 185 potential nominees as “not qualified,” and the administration has a policy of not nominating such candidates.

According to a new report, Michigan had the most expensive judicial races in 2009-10, accounting for one fourth of the $38.4 million spent nationwide. The state also saw the highest spending on TV advertisements and the most attack ads.

Governor Hickenlooper ultimately chose a state trial court judge to fill the seat. The governor reported making his decision on the basis of conversations with sitting justices, diverse legal groups, business groups, and public officials.

“The New Politics of Judicial Elections 2009-10,” by the Justice at Stake Campaign, the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, and the National Institute on Money in State Politics, is released as the presidential race is heating up -- with…

Texas Chief Justice Wallace B. Jefferson was recently interviewed by The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel. Chief Justice Jefferson is a member of the Advisory Committee for our O'Connor Judicial Selection Project.

A new clinic for victims of domestic violence at the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law will be named the Ruth V. McGregor Family Protection Clinic in honor of retired Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Ruth V. McGregor. Justice McGregor chairs the Advisory Committee for the O'Connor Judicial Selection Project.

Judge and IAALS board member Kevin Burke ruffled some feathers with the Newt Gingrich campaign after questioning his recent attacks on the judiciary. Here, he responds to Gingrich's point-by-point rebuttal.

The supreme court nominating commission sent three names to Governor Hickenlooper for the vacancy created by Justice Martinez’ resignation. The nominees include a Democrat, a Republican, and an unaffiliated voter, but none of whom consider themselves to be politically active. (The governor must make the appointment within 15 days of receiving the commission’s list.)

Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor's one-minute video on the supreme court's website urging a “yes” vote on Issue 1 in the November election met with some criticism. Issue 1 would raise the retirement age for state judges from 70 to 76.

A state senator proposed a constitutional amendment to alter the way the members of the state’s three appellate courts are selected. The proposal calls for a modified federal selection process, where judges are nominated by the governor and confirmed by the senate for eight year terms, subject to reappointment. The Tennessee Plan is set to expire in 2012, so some type of legislative action must be taken.

Minority groups called for the governor, who will make two supreme court nominations in March, to make the state supreme court more diverse. No justices of color currently serve on the court.

Governor Christie publicly criticized a state trial court judge who ruled that requiring increased contributions to judicial pension plans is an indirect reduction in judges’ pay and in violation of the state constitution. The lawsuit was filed by a judge.

Governor Nixon selected George Draper III from three nominees submitted to him by the appellate judicial commission to fill a vacancy on the supreme court. Draper will be the second African-American to serve on the court. He will stand for retention in 2014.

Following Gingrich’s lead, other Republican presidential candidates chimed in with charges of judicial activism and proposals to limit the federal judiciary.

Two new laws will require more online information about judges standing for retention in 2012. Under this legislation, the commission on judicial performance review will post a listing of cases in which judges ruled on the constitutionality of statutes, a short biography of each judge, and the full text of their decisions during the current term.

In an address devoted to the importance of pro bono to the legal profession and to the society it serves, ABA President Wm. T. (Bill) Robinson III stressed the importance of an independent judiciary and legal profession. Click here to read the…

IAALS board member Russell Wheeler was interviewed for this article, which focused on a federal judicial selection process in which President Obama has been slow to nominate and the Senate has been slow to confirm federal judges.

The New York times reviewed the legal profession's failure to put women in leadership and judicial positions in the thirty years since Sandra Day O'Connor heard her first Supreme Court case.

Three federal judge vacancies in Atlanta, which have been declared "emergencies," face continued delays due to partisan gridlock. Larry Thompson, an Advisory Committee member for the O'Connor Judicial Selection Project, was interviewed for the story.

Presidential Newt Gingrich brought national focus to an issue state courts were already facing: legislators and politicians around the country are taking aim at the third branch of government. Click here to read the article.