Author: Sara Reynolds
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Washington Gov. Inslee selects third appointment to state supreme court
Washington Governor Jay Inslee (D) appointed Judge G. Helen Whitener to the Washington Supreme Court on April 13, 2020. Whitener succeeded Justice Charles Wiggins, who retired in March. Whitener is Gov. Inslee’s third nominee to the nine-member supreme court. Whitener has been a judge on the Pierce County Superior Court in Washington since 2015. From…
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Justin Walker nominated to U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
On April 3, President Donald Trump (R) announced that he would nominate Judge Justin Walker to the the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to succeed Judge Thomas Griffith. Griffith announced he would retire effective September 1. According to The Washington Post, Walker is the youngest nominee to the D.C. Circuit since 1983. Walker…
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Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for March
In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies from March 3, 2020, to April 2, 2020. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month. HIGHLIGHTS Vacancies: There have been three new judicial vacancies since the February 2020 report. There are 75 vacancies out of 870 active Article III judicial…
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U.S. Supreme Court postpones April sitting
The U.S. Supreme Court announced it was postponing the eight hours of oral arguments originally scheduled during its April sitting (April 20-22; April 27-29). In a press release, the court said the delay was “in keeping with public health guidance in response to COVID-19.” The court had previously postponed the 11 hours of oral argument…
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President Trump announces nominee for only open U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacancy
On March 30, President Donald Trump (R) announced his intent to nominate Judge Cory Wilson to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. Wilson was previously nominated to a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi. He had a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee…
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Georgia governor appoints first supreme court justice
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp (R) appointed Judge Carla McMillian to the Georgia Supreme Court on March 27, 2020. McMillian succeeded Justice Robert Benham, who retired on March 1. McMillian is Gov. Kemp’s first nominee to the nine-member supreme court. McMillian was a judge on the Georgia Court of Appeals from 2013 to 2020. She was…
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Florida governor delays state supreme court selection due to coronavirus
On March 19, 2020, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) announced he would delay nominating individuals to two Florida Supreme Court vacancies until at least May 1. The governor said he had not had time to review the candidates’ application materials because of the coronavirus pandemic. Normally under state law, DeSantis would have needed to select…
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Georgia Supreme Court to review canceled supreme court election
Two candidates are challenging the cancelation of an election to fill a Georgia Supreme Court vacancy. The election was previously scheduled for May 19, 2020, to fill Justice Keith Blackwell’s seat, but it was canceled after Blackwell announced he was retiring, effective November 18, 2020. A statement from the Georgia Supreme Court said the governor…