Monday, March 09, 2009
State Sen. John Edwards apparently on federal judgeship short list
Roanoke's state senator was highly recommended as a judge by several groups.
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From The Roanoke Times
Virginia Sen. John Edwards appears to be on the short list of those being considered for a federal judgeship.
Last year, President Bush nominated Glen Conrad, a Roanoke-based federal judge, for a vacancy on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The U.S. Senate declined to vote on Conrad, however, and the nomination expired.
Since then, more than 20 people have submitted their name for the seat left vacant by Emory Widener of Abingdon, who died in 2007.
Edwards' name showed up on lists of recommendations from three key stakeholder groups: The Virginia State Bar, The Virginia Bar Association and Virginia Trial Lawyers Association. The only other candidate who appeared on all three lists -- and on the state bar and trial lawyers' lists as "highly qualified" -- was Virginia Supreme Court Justice Barbara Milano Keenan.
The Virginia Women Attorneys Association highly recommended Keenan but listed Edwards only as "qualified." Keenan also appeared on the lists of several other lawyers' associations, while Edwards did not.
Next up in the process will be vetting by U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Jim Webb, who will in turn make recommendations to President Obama.
"We are aware of a number of exceptional candidates who have expressed an interest in the 4th Circuit vacancy," Webb spokeswoman Kimberly Hunter said. "Senators Webb and Warner will soon begin a collaborative process to examine their credentials and make recommendations to the White House. This process has a strong history of requiring the consensus of the home state senators."
Warner spokesman Kevin Hall said, "We're working with Senator Webb, the White House and state lawyer groups to identify and vet potential candidates, and I imagine we'll begin interviewing finalists fairly soon."
Edwards, a Democrat, has also toyed with the idea of running for the Democratic nomination for attorney general. If so, he'll have to file his petitions by April. Del. Steve Shannon of Fairfax County is already running for the nomination and had $746,415 in cash on hand at the end of 2008.
Former U.S. Attorney John Brownlee of Roanoke; state Sen. Ken Cuccinelli of Fairfax County; and Arlington lawyer Dave Foster are seeking the Republican nomination for attorney general.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit has jurisdiction over nine federal district courts spread across Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina and West Virginia.
Currently, the 4th Circuit bench has one vacancy from every state except West Virginia. Tradition generally dictates that each state generally retains its judgeships, although North Carolina may well get an additional seat from South Carolina because of its larger population, said University of Richmond law professor Carl Tobias, who is also a candidate for the Virginia judgeship.
The Senate interview process will likely begin within the next month, with Warner and Webb making their recommendations sometime later this spring.
"It's an opportunity that comes around quite rarely," Edwards said.
