Litigation

NJ Judicial Screening Panel Quits En Masse

By Peter Hardin

The en masse resignation of a panel that advised New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on judicial appointments has highlighted one of the hottest disputes in the nation over preserving an independent judiciary.

All seven members of the Judiciary Advisory Panel resigned, according to a Philadelphia Inquirer article, and six of them signed a letter protesting Christie’s recent decision not to routinely renominate a sitting state justice (see Gavel Grab). In declining to reappoint Justice John Wallace, the governor said the court had not done enough to give the state constitution a strict reading.

The Judiciary Advisory Panel screens potential nominees to New Jersey’s Superior Court. The letter signed by six of its members protested a threat to judicial independence:

“The panel has understood a judge serving honorably and effectively, with competence and integrity, will achieve tenure in judicial office. This understanding is supported by the intent of the framers of our constitution and is firmly grounded in our traditions and history, and has been followed consistently for over 60 years by all governors of both political parties.

“You have expressed publicly a profoundly different view of the governor’s appointive responsibilities. This was exemplified by your actions and remarks in refusing to reappoint Justice John Wallace to the Supreme Court, a jurist who indisputably exemplified all the qualifications for honorable judicial services. It is a view that is inconsistent with an independent judiciary.”

Four of the panelists were former state Supreme Court justices. Another panelist who resigned,  retired Appellate Division judge Harold B. Wells III, a Republican, submitted a separate letter attributing his quitting to “personal reasons.”

A spokesman for Christie, Michael Drewniak, issued a statement in response:

“The governor thanks the advisory panel members for their service, and we expect to be making appointments to fill those vacancies in short order. The members who resigned are entitled to their opinions, but not everyone shares their views, including others in the judiciary and legal community who recognize the governor’s constitutional prerogative and authority in this regard.”

Earlier, Christie had emphasized that New Jersey’s constitution “clearly vests in the governor the ability to decide who is appointed to the Supreme Court.?

It was the first time since the constitution was rewritten 63 years ago that a governor had denied such a reappointment that was sought by a justice.

Full post as published by The Gavel on June 03, 2010 (boomark / email).