A reminder that Texas - as the rest of the states - has a dual judicial system. On is elected, the other is appointed.
- Click here for the article.
- Click here for the article.
A year ago today on this page, I criticized the troubling obstructionism by U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz of Texas.
They have repeatedly failed to fill vacated seats in our state’s federal appellate and district courts, including their opposition to potential nominations of qualified district judges originally recommended by Republicans.
In his response letter, Sen. Cornyn objected to my comments and pointed out that he is working hard to fill these seats and to “ensure Texas has some of the best and brightest judges in these important posts.”
It has now been a year since Sen. Cornyn’s response. Our state’s federal judiciary is in abysmal shape, as there are still two vacancies on the 5thCircuit Court of Appeals and 10 vacancies — three more than last year — in Texas’ U.S. District Courts. The oldest vacancy goes back to 2011. Additionally, several federal judges are expected to retire in the next few years.
In comparison, there are no appellate vacancies under Missouri and Louisiana, both part of the 5th Circuit. Missouri does not have a U.S. District Court vacancy. Louisiana has three, with one vacated a month ago and two in 2015, both of which have already had Senate hearings.
The Judicial Conference of the United States, headed by Chief Justice John Roberts, has marked all the Texas vacancies as a “judicial emergency,” accounting for 29 percent of the judicial emergencies nationwide — a feat not achieved by any other state. This designation implies that the courts’ current caseload is both excessive and unmanageable. Even if these seats are filled tomorrow, the conference has asked Congress to add many new judgeships to the federal district courts in Texas.
- Click here for Wikipedia's entry on The Judicial Conference of the United States.
