South Carolina Supreme Court justice vacancy (December 2022)
| South Carolina Supreme Court |
|---|
 |
| Hearn vacancy |
| Date: December 31, 2022 |
| Status: Seat filled |
| Nomination |
| Nominee: Gary Hill |
| Date: February 8, 2023 |
The South Carolina State Legislature appointed Judge Gary Hill to the South Carolina Supreme Court on February 8, 2023. Hill succeeded Justice Kaye Hearn, who retired on December 31, 2022. Hearn left office after reaching the court's mandatory retirement age of 72.[1][2]
At the time of the vacancy under South Carolina law, the five justices on the supreme court were appointed by the South Carolina Legislature to serve on the bench. The South Carolina Judicial Merit Selection Commission screened and selected candidates for judgeships, then submitted a list of three names to the general assembly. The assembly then voted on the candidates, either choosing one of the three recommendations or rejecting the entire slate.[3]
Ballotpedia has compiled the following resources on the process to fill the South Carolina Supreme Court vacancy:
- An overview of the appointee.
- A list of candidates who applied to the vacancy.
- An overview of the selection process.
- Noteworthy events that occurred during the nomination process.
- An overview of the court following the vacancy.
- An overview of the justice who left office.
- A list of other state supreme court appointments in 2022.
The appointee
- See also: D. Garrison Hill
Gary Hill earned a B.A. from Wofford College in 1986 and a J.D. from the University of South Carolina Law School in 1989.[4]
Hill was elected to the South Carolina Court of Appeals in 2017. Previously, he served as a circuit court judge for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit and was an attorney in private practice.[4]
He also served as a member of the South Carolina Bar House of Delegates and as president of the Government Law Section.[4]
Appointee candidates and nominations
Ballotpedia will post information on candidates and prospective appointees as information becomes available. If you know of information that should be included here, please email us.
Applicants
The following candidates applied for the vacancy.[5]
- Judge Gary Hill
- Aphrodite Konduros (withdrawn)
- Stephanie McDonald (withdrawn)
The selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in South Carolina
The five justices on the supreme court are appointed by the South Carolina Legislature to serve on the bench. The South Carolina Judicial Merit Selection Commission screens and selects candidates for judgeships, then submits a list of three names to the general assembly. The assembly then votes on the candidates, either choosing one of the three recommendations or rejecting the entire slate.[3]
South Carolina Judicial Merit Selection Commission
The South Carolina Judicial Merit Selection Commission, also known as the JMSC, is an independent state commission in South Carolina that plays a role in the state's judicial selection process. The commission was established in 1997 by a legislatively referred constitutional amendment.[6] The JMSC has 10 members: five selected by the speaker of the House, three selected by the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, and two selected by the Senate president.[7]
Noteworthy events
Two finalists withdraw from consideration
Two of the three finalists, Stephanie McDonald and Aphrodite Konduros, withdrew their bids for the vacancy in January 2023. With Judge Gary Hill the sole remaining finalist, the South Carolina Supreme Court was set to have an all-male bench, as the remaining four justices were also men.[8]
Makeup of the court
- See also: South Carolina Supreme Court
Justices
Following Hearn's retirement, the South Carolina Supreme Court included the following members:
| ■ Donald Beatty | Elected by the South Carolina General Assembly in 2007 | |
| ■ John C. Few | Elected by the South Carolina General Assembly in 2016 | |
| ■ George C. James, Jr. | Elected by the South Carolina General Assembly in 2017 | |
| ■ John Kittredge | Elected by the South Carolina General Assembly in 2008 |
About the court
Founded in 1895, the South Carolina Supreme Court is the state's court of last resort and has five judgeships. The current chief of the court is John Kittredge.
In South Carolina, state supreme court justices are selected through direct legislative appointment. Justices are appointed directly by the state legislature. There are two states that use this selection method. To read more about the legislative appointment of judges, click here.
As of August 2024, all five judges on the court were appointed by the South Carolina State Legislature.
The South Carolina Supreme Court meets in Columbia, South Carolina.[9]
About Justice Hearn
- See also: Kaye Hearn
Justice Hearn joined the South Carolina Supreme Court in 2010. The South Carolina General Assembly appointed Hearn to the court in May 2009.
Before serving on the state supreme court, Hearn served on the South Carolina Court of Appeals for fifteen years. Previously, she was a family court judge from 1986 to 1995.[4]
Hearn received her B.A. from Bethany College in 1972 and her J.D. from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1977.[4]
Other state supreme court appointments in 2022
- See also: State supreme court vacancies, 2022
The following table lists vacancies on state supreme courts that opened in 2022. Click the link under the Court column for a particular vacancy for more information on that vacancy.
Click here for vacancies that opened in 2021.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ NBC News, "South Carolina Supreme Court justice’s retirement likely leaves behind an all-male bench," January 20, 2023
- ↑ News 10, "South Carolina becomes only state with all-male high court," February 8, 2023
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Albany Law Review, "The Untouchables: The Impact of South Carolina's New Judicial Selection System on the South Carolina Supreme Court, 1997-2003," June 30, 2004
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 South Carolina Judicial Branch, "Judge D. Garrison Hill," accessed February 10, 2023 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "bio" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Times Union, "South Carolina Supreme Court set for all-male bench," January 18, 2023
- ↑ South Carolina Legislature, "South Carolina Constitution," accessed November 21, 2021 (Article V Section 27)
- ↑ South Carolina Legislature, "Code of Laws," accessed November 21, 2021 (Section 2-19-10)
- ↑ AP News, "South Carolina Supreme Court set for all-male bench," January 18, 2023
- ↑ South Carolina Judicial Department, "Supreme Court History," accessed August 25, 2021
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Federal courts:
Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of South Carolina • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of South Carolina
State courts:
South Carolina Supreme Court • South Carolina Court of Appeals • South Carolina Circuit Courts • South Carolina Masters-in-Equity • South Carolina Family Courts • South Carolina Magistrate Courts • South Carolina Municipal Courts • South Carolina Probate Courts
State resources:
Courts in South Carolina • South Carolina judicial elections • Judicial selection in South Carolina
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