Gavel Grab

In the wake of a costly and sometimes nasty election for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, state legislators are hearing pleas to switch from competitive elections to gubernatorial appointment of appellate court judges.

At a state House hearing in Harrisburg, Lynn Marks, executive director of Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts, lamented Pennsylvania’s current system as “broken” and weakening public confidence in fair and impartial courts, according to an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Marks testified about special-interest group donations:

“The fact that judges may rule on cases involving campaign contributors fuels the growing public belief that campaign contributions affect judges’ decisions in the courtroom.”

A one-time opponent that has changed views of merit selection of judges was the AFL-CIO. A representative said the group would consider backing appellate appointments, using a nominating commission as part of the process, if the commission had adequate public representation.  The AFL-CIO did not support the current bill, which proposes a commission of 14 members, including 7 lawyers.

Among those testifying in opposition was Tom Foley, a board member of the Pennsylvania Association for Justice. A nominating commission would favor potential candidates from metropolitan centers and remove the role of the public, he said.

Gov. Edward G. Rendell wrote a letter in support of the bill, saying merit selection “would squarely remove the influence of money in our judicial elections and ensure fairness in the judicial system.”

The bill proposes that the governor name appellate judges from nominees forwarded by a commission. Confirmation by the state Senate would be required, and judges would stand for “retention” election, without opposition after four years.

Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts is a partner of Justice at Stake, which submitted testimony to the House Judiciary subcommittee that held the hearing. You can  learn more about it by visiting Gavel Grab, or you can read our testimony by clicking here. You can learn more about merit selection systems and that states that use them by visiting the Justice at Stake resource page on the topic here.