Commission announces interview rescheduling

The Appellate Judicial Commission has suspended the process to fill Judge Booker T. Shaw’s vacancy on the Eastern District Court of Appeals until at least late summer because of scheduling conflicts with filling the three vacancies on the Western District Court of Appeals.

Interviews for the three Western District vacancies will be held on March 2, 3, 12 and 13. The commission will meet at noon on March 13 to select a panel for three nominees to fill the vacancy of Judge Ronald R. Holliger.

Following Gov. Jay Nixon’s selection of one of the nominees, the commission will select – from the same applicant pool – a second panel for the vacancy created by Judge Paul M. Spinden’s resignation. The commission will do the same thing once again after the governor’s second selection for the vacancy created by Judge Joseph P. Dandurand.

Since the commission does not know when the governor will select a nominee from the first panel, no dates can be announced for the commission’s meetings for the second and third panel selection.

Because the process to fill the Western District could take a fair amount of time, the commission has suspended the process to fill Shaw’s vacancy on the Eastern District. All applications for his vacancy filed by the original deadline of Feb. 24 will be held and considered for the position, unless the applicant requests otherwise. No current date has been set on when the commission will reopen the Shaw’s vacancy.