Randy Barnhart

Some in the US Senate still don't know who won the last election

In a recent publication, Length of Time from Nomination to Confirmation for "Uncontroversial" U.S. Circuit and District Court Nominees: Detailed Analysis, by Barry J. McMillion [Kindle Edition here], we learn:

Average and median waiting times to confirmation increased steadily with each presidency, from Ronald Reagan’s to Barack Obama’s, for uncontroversial circuit court nominees and almost as steadily for uncontroversial district court nominees.

Uncontroversial Circuit Court Nominees

For uncontroversial circuit court nominees, the mean and median number of days from nomination to confirmation ranged from a low of 64.5 and 44.0 days, respectively, during the Reagan presidency to a high of 227.3 and 218.0 days, respectively, during the Obama presidency.

The percentage of uncontroversial circuit court nominees waiting more than 200 days from first nomination to confirmation increased from 5.1% during the Reagan presidency to 63.6% during the Obama presidency.

Uncontroversial District Court Nominees

For uncontroversial district court nominees, the mean and median number of days from nomination to confirmation ranged from a low of 69.9 and 41.0 days, respectively, during the Reagan presidency to a high of 204.8 and 208.0 days, respectively, during the Obama presidency.

The percentage of uncontroversial district court nominees waiting more than
200 days from first nomination to confirmation increased from 6.6% during the Reagan presidency to 54.7% during the Obama presidency.

The author defines what "uncontroversial" means. He is an analyst for the federal judiciary. (Yes, Colorado did just get a new federal district judge, but this is over the top.)

Federal Courts Must Limit Civil Cases Which Are Sealed

This past week, the Judicial Conference of the United States adopted a policy which seeks to limit the civil cases which federal courts put under seal. The Conference is composed of Senior Circuit Judges and was created by Congress in 1922 to serve as the top policy-maker for the administration of the federal courts.

According to the new policy, "an entire civil case file should only be sealed when . . . sealing . . . is required by statute or rule or justified by a showing of extraordinary circumstances and the absence of narrower feasible and effective alternatives such as sealing discrete documents or redacting information, so that sealing an entire case file is a last resort." An order which seals a civil case in its entirety should include findings which justify the seal, and any seal should be lifted upon a determination that the initial reason is no longer operative.