The American Bar Association has urged the prompt filling of federal judicial vacancies, saying delays hurt the administration of justice. The ABA’s recommendation, passed by the association’s House of Delegates at its August 2002 annual meeting, reads, in part:

"[t]he prompt filling of existing judicial vacancies in the federal courts of the United States is essential for the efficient, responsible and effective administration of justice; and that undue delays in the nomination and confirmation of candidates for vacancies in the federal courts of the United States adversely affects such effective, responsible and timely administration of justice."

The recommendation went on to urge the President to promptly nominate candidates; the Senate Judiciary Committee to promptly clear or reject nominees for full Senate action; and the Senate to promptly advise and consent to or reject the nominees. The report accompanying the recommendation said its purpose "is not to excoriate either Democrats or Republicans. . . The fact is that whoever may bear responsibility for delays in the process, it is the federal courts that suffer, and so does the rule of law."

Another proposal on judicial vacancies before the ABA was withdrawn in favor of the adopted resolution. That proposal urged that the Senate Judiciary Committee clear nominees for a full Senate vote within a specific time period. "We believe," the report said, "that urging such a requirement upon a full committee of the Senate by the ABA is, to say the least, presumptuous."

This is not the first time the ABA has dealt with the issue of judicial vacancies. The House of Delegates passed a similar resolution in 1990 and again in 1998. The ABA’s Board of Governors passed a resolution on pending nominations in 1997.

Federal Judicial Center Begins Search for New Director

The Board of the Federal Judicial Center has begun its search for a successor to Judge Fern M. Smith, director of the Center, who will be departing in July 2003. A search committee appointed by the Chief Justice will make recommendations to the Board. Judge William H. Yohn, Jr. (ED-Pa.) chairs the committee. Other members are Circuit Judge Pasco Bowman (8^th Cir.) and Circuit Judge Pauline Newman (Fed. Cir.).

The Center’s statutory duties include :

• providing Judicial Conference committees, the courts, and Congress with research and analysis about court administration and case management;
• conducting seminars, workshops, and conferences, and developing curriculum packages, monographs, and video, multimedia, and interactive computer programs for the orientation and continuing education of federal judges, clerks of court, probation and pretrial services officers, and other staff;
• fostering judicial federalism, international judicial education, and preservation of federal court history.

The Center has a staff of 145 and a fiscal 2002 appropriation of $20,000,000.

The Board expects the director to commit to a term of at least four years, with the expectation that the tenure will not exceed seven years. There are no mandatory criteria (including no mandatory retirement age). The Board has asked the committee to consider, among other things, the applicant’s management and leadership skills and qualifications in the fields of education and research, including scholarship, and the applicant’s willingness to devote himself or herself to the significant demands of the position. Substantial familiarity with the federal courts and their operations is important. The Board has expressed an interest in applications from federal judges, particularly those with experience as trial judges, but also seeks applications from nonjudges with the listed qualities. All interested persons are encouraged to contact the committee by letter expressing interest in the position and enclosing a résumé.

28 U.S.C. § 133(b) provides that if an active federal judge becomes Center director, the President shall appoint an additional judge for the director’s court, although if the director returns to the court as an active judge, the next vacancy will go unfilled.

A judge serving as director continues to receive his or her regular judicial salary as the director. The salary of a nonjudge is that of a U.S. district judge, currently $150,000.

All expressions of interest should be sent, in triplicate, to Judge Yohn, by October 15, at 14613 U.S. Courthouse, 601 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Please send no fax or electronic applications.

The committee expects to submit its recommendations to the Board in December. The Board expects to select the next director in early 2003.