We have previously reported on the confirmation status of Judge Bernice Donald, who President Obama nominated for the seat vacated by Senior Circuit Judge Gilman. Professor Carl Tobias has written an interesting article about the confirmation process as it relates to circuit judges in the current Senate. In this article, he focuses specifically on the Sixth Circuit with respect to the recent nomination and confirmation process of Judge Stranch, including a comparison of her experience with that of Judge Donald. As we slowly inch towards another election year, it remains to be seen whether the Senate will act on any circuit judge nominations, which could potentially leave the Sixth Circuit with a lingering open seat indefinitely. The Sixth Circuit has in recent memory fallen victim to Senate confirmation stalemates, including several years ago when it was down to only eight active judges. Fortunately, the Court is not presently facing anything that dire (15 of 16 slots are filled), but we all benefit when it has a full complement of active judges. We will continue to monitor any developments regarding Judge Donald’s confirmation process.
