#judicial-appointments

#judicial-appointments

In January, Alberta premier Danielle Smith issued an extraordinary threat. Unless Prime Minister Mark Carney gave Alberta more influence over judicial appointments, her government would withhold funding from the courts. In an open letter, Smith argued she wanted judges who reflected Alberta's "distinct legal traditions"-though what those traditions are is unclear.

A bill introduced on Wednesday by California's Sen. Adam Schiff and Rep. Juan Vargas would authorize the attorney general to appoint temporary immigration judges that have served on appellate panels, are administrative judges in other agencies, or have 10 years of immigration law experience. Such limits would preclude much of the administration's effort to authorize up to 600 military lawyers to be temporary immigration judges; as part of that move, the White House scrapped the requirement that temporary immigration judges should have immigration law experience.

Several candidates for judicial appointments expressed disappointment over the lack of feedback on their unsuccessful applications, indicating a demand for greater transparency in the selection process.

Petunia, a 2-year-old hairless French bulldog mix, won first prize at Sonoma's World's Ugliest Dog Contest and will appear on The Today Show soon.

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt described the postponed Bundestag vote on judicial appointments as normal, saying he cannot understand accusations of damage being done to Germany's top court.