Litigation

Successful Minority Judges Tell ?How I Did It?

By Peter Hardin

An intriguing, and sometimes surprising, look at judicial diversity from the viewpoint of successful minority judges  is offered by a new Judicature article.

Written by Linda M. Merola and Jon B. Gould of George Mason University, the article on “Navigating Judicial Selection” explores the influence of a state’s process for selecting judges on diversity. The results are not necessarily what you might expect:

“Generally, we find that the varying selection mechanisms tend to operate to produce a surprising similarity in the processes, strategies and experiences of judicial candidates.

“Rather than a specific selection mechanism, the judges overwhelmingly point to other factors–such as politics, networking, mentorship, and other resources–as determinative of the ability of diverse candidates to become judges.”

When the judges talked about the varying merit selection or competitive election processes that took them to the bench, they “extolled the selection systems they had successfully navigated,” according to the report in Judicature, the journal of the American Judicature Society. It is a Justice at Stake partner.

But here’s a finding that won’t surprise you: “Money was described as crucially important in elective states.” Many of the judges were concerned that minority candidates are handicapped by an inability to build large campaign treasuries.

The study, cosponsored by Justice at Stake, focuses on experiences of 23 judges of color across five states and keeps their identities anonymous. To learn more about the importance of diversity on the bench, check out Justice at Stake?s issues page on the topic.

Full post as published by The Gavel on May 18, 2010 (boomark / email).