New Chairs Named for Judicial Conference Committees

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. named five new Judicial Conference committee chairs and extended the terms of six current Conference committee chairs. The new appointments were effective October 1, 2014.

New chairs:

• Judge Gary A. Fenner (W.D. Mo.) succeeds Chief Judge Joseph H. McKinley, Jr., (W.D. Ky.) as chair of the Committee on Financial Disclosure;
• Judge Wm. Terrell Hodges (M.D. Fl.) succeeds Judge Julie A. Robinson (D. Kan.) as chair of the Committee on Court Administration and Case Management;
• Judge Sandra Segal Ikuta (Ninth Circuit) succeeds Bankruptcy Judge Eugene R. Wedoff (N.D. Ill.) as chair of the Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules;
• Judge William K. Sessions III (D. Vt) succeeds Chief Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater (N.D. Tex.) as chair of the Advisory Committee on Evidence Rules; and
• Chief Judge Rebecca Beach Smith (E.D. Va.) succeeds Judge John M. Rogers (Sixth Circuit) as chair of the Committee on Codes of Conduct.

Chairs with extended terms:

• Judge Nancy F. Atlas (S.D. Tex.) is extended for one year as chair of the Committee on Judicial Security;
• Judge David G. Campbell (D. Ariz.) is extended for one year as chair of the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules;
• Judge Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain (Ninth Circuit) is extended for one year as chair of the Committee on International Judicial Relations;
• Judge Reena Raggi (Second Circuit) is extended for one year as chair of the Advisory Committee on Criminal Rules;
• Judge Anthony J. Scirica (Third Circuit) is extended for one year as chair of the Committee on Judicial Conduct and Disability;
• Judge Richard W. Story (N.D. Ga.) is extended for one year as chair of the Committee on Federal-State Jurisdiction; and
• Judge Timothy M. Tymkovich (Tenth Circuit) is extended for one year as chair of the Committee on Judicial Resources.

Judicial Conference committees address and advise the Judicial Conference on a wide variety of subjects such as information technology, personnel, probation and pretrial services, space and facilities, security, judicial salaries and benefits, budget, defender services, court administration, and rules of practice and procedure. The Chief Justice has sole authority to make committee appointments.