TOPEKA — The Supreme Court Nominating Commission will interview 14 attorneys and judges who applied to fill a vacancy on the Kansas Supreme Court created by the July 28 departure of Justice Nancy Moritz to serve on the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Applicants will be interviewed beginning at 9 a.m. Monday, Aug. 4, and Tuesday, Aug. 5, in the Fatzer Courtroom in the Kansas Judicial Center in Topeka. The full interview schedule and brief biographical statements from each applicant are available on the Kansas judicial branch website home page under the heading “What’s New.”
“These will be the first Supreme Court justice interviews open to the public since the guidelines for open interviews were adopted by the commission in January 2011,” said commission chair Anne Burke of Overland Park. “This level of transparency makes it possible for anyone to observe how the commission interviews candidates and reviews their skills and qualifications in our state’s merit-based selection process.”
Although the interviews are open to the public, cell phones and other electronic devices may not be used in the interview room. Also, the guidelines allow the commission to, on a motion and a majority vote, close part of an interview if it’s “necessary to protect the privacy interests of the applicant," although the provision further states that, "closing any portion of an interview is disfavored."
To ensure a fair interview process, applicants are discouraged from attending an interview other than their own and from seeking or accepting information about questions asked of other applicants.
The public may make written comment to the commission up to one week before the interviews take place, or by Monday, July 28, by sending them to: Supreme Court Nominating Commission; ATTN: Anne Burke; 301 SW 10th Ave., Room 374; Topeka, KS 66612.
After interviewing applicants and considering all public comment, the Supreme Court Nominating Commission will decide the three applicants to recommend to the governor to fill the position. The governor will then choose which of the three candidates to appoint to fill the Supreme Court vacancy.
The Supreme Court Nominating Commission is an independent body created by the Kansas Constitution. Four of its members are appointed by the governor from each of the state’s four congressional districts. These appointees are not attorneys. Four other members are attorneys selected by attorneys in each of the state's congressional districts. The commission chair is an attorney elected by attorneys in a statewide vote.
Members of the commission are: Anne E. Burke, Chair, Overland Park; David J. Rebein, Dodge City; Linda B. Weis, Manhattan; Natalie G. Haag, Topeka; Felita R. Kahrs, Topeka; Matthew D. Keenan, Leawood; Robert Hayworth, Shawnee Mission; Jay F. Fowler, Wichita; and Gary T. Mason, Maize.