Tennessee Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments
| Judicial nominating commissions |
|---|
 |
| Individual nominating committees |
| Select a committee in the dropdown below and click "Submit" to view information about that committee. |
| Methods of judicial selection |
| Partisan elections |
| Nonpartisan elections |
| Michigan method |
| Retention elections |
| Assisted appointment |
| Bar-controlled commission |
| Governor-controlled commission |
| Hybrid commission |
| Legislative elections |
| Gubernatorial appointment |
The Tennessee Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments is an independent state commission in Tennessee that plays a role in the state's judicial selection process.[1] Gov. Bill Haslam (R) established the Council in a 2016 executive order. The Council consists of 11 members appointed by the governor.
Tennessee uses the assisted appointment method of judicial selection for its state courts. Using this method, the governor appoints state judges from a list of names submitted by the Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments. This selection method is used for the state supreme court and intermediate appellate and general jurisdiction courts.
The Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments is a governor-controlled commission, which means that its members are chosen by the governor. As of September 6, 2025, 11 states used this type of commission. To learn more about controlling majorities in judicial selection commissions, click here.
Members
Last updated: April 2025
The council has 11 members. All members are selected and appointed by the governor. He must choose three members from each geographic region of the state: Eastern, Middle and Western. The last two members are at-large, meaning they can come from any part of the state. At least eight lawyers must sit on the council at all times. Members serve staggered two-year terms. The governor must also choose a chair of the council.
Council members receive no compensation for their service on the council but are allowed to seek reimbursement for travel expenses related to their service on the council. If a member were to take a paid position with the state or a political party, he or she would lose his or her spot on the council.[1]
| Members of the Tennessee Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments, April 2025[1] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Appointed by | |
| Chairperson - Lang Wiseman | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Donald J. Aho | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Betsy Beck | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Matthew Dowty | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Elizabeth Ellen Foy | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Mitch Graves | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Carlin Hess | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Jimmie Carpenter Miller | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Todd Skelton | Bill Lee (R) | |
| Terica Smith | Bill Lee (R) | |
Process
Executive Order No. 81, which Gov. Bill Lee (R) issued in September 2021, lays out the steps for filling a judicial vacancy:[2]
- When a seat on a Tennessee court becomes vacant, the governor must provide written notice to the council members.
- The members have 60 days of this notice to hold a public meeting in Nashville with the applicants for the position. The meeting must be posted on the Administrative Office of the Courts website with all pertinent details so members of the public may attend.
- The council meets privately to deliberate about its recommendation to the governor.
- The council votes publicly, but the ballots are written anonymously. The three candidates who receive the most votes are then sent to the governor as nominees for the judicial seat.
- Each nominee must be an attorney licensed to practice law in Tennessee. Along with the names of the nominees, the council must provide the governor with the candidate's application, plus any additional information the governor may request.
- The governor selects from one of the three candidates nominated by the Council, or requires the Council to provide an additional three candidates. If the governor opts for second slate of candidates, the Council must present the three candidates to the governor within 45 days.
- The governor must nominate one of the six candidates within 60 days after receiving the second slate of candidates.[2]
Control of judicial selection commissions
Assisted appointment is a method of judicial selection in which a nominating commission reviews the qualifications of judicial candidates and submits a list of names to the governor, who appoints a judge from the list.[3]
At the state supreme court level, this method is further divided into the following three types, based on the makeup of the judicial nominating commissions. Those types are:
- Governor-controlled commission - The governor is either responsible for appointing a majority of the members of the nominating commission or may decline to appoint a candidate from a list provided by the nominating commission.
- Bar-controlled commission - Members of the state Bar Association are responsible for electing a majority of the members of the nominating commission.
- Hybrid - There is no majority of members chosen by either the governor or the state Bar Association. The membership of these commissions is determined by different rules in each state.
Twenty-three courts in 22 states used assisted appointment to select state supreme court justices as of June 2021.[4][5] Tennessee used a governor-controlled commission. The table below shows the number of courts using each variation of assisted appointment at the state supreme court level.
| Assisted appointment methods in state supreme courts | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Courts (of 23) | ||
| Governor-controlled majority | 10 | ||
| Bar-controlled majority | 1 | ||
| Hybrid | 12 | ||
About judicial selection
Each state has a unique set of guidelines governing how they select judges at the state and local level. These methods of selection are:
Election
- Partisan election: Judges are elected by the people, and candidates are listed on the ballot alongside a label designating political party affiliation.
- Nonpartisan election: Judges are elected by the people, and candidates are listed on the ballot without a label designating party affiliation.
- Michigan method: State supreme court justices are selected through nonpartisan elections preceded by either partisan primaries or conventions.
- Retention election: A periodic process whereby voters are asked whether an incumbent judge should remain in office for another term. Judges are not selected for initial terms in office using this election method.
Assisted appointment
- Assisted appointment, also known as merit selection or the Missouri Plan: A nominating commission reviews the qualifications of judicial candidates and submits a list of names to the governor, who appoints a judge from the list.[3] At the state supreme court level, this method is further divided into the following three types:
- Bar-controlled commission: Members of the state Bar Association are responsible for electing a majority of the judicial nominating commission that sends the governor a list of nominees that they must choose from.
- Governor-controlled commission: The governor is responsible for appointing a majority of the judicial nominating commission that sends the governor a list of nominees they must choose from.
- Hybrid commission: The judicial nominating commission has no majority of members chosen by either the governor or the state bar association. These commissions determine membership in a variety of ways, but no institution or organization has a clear majority control.
Direct appointment
- Court appointment: Judges are selected by judges in the state judiciary.
- Gubernatorial appointment: Judges are appointed by the governor. In some cases, approval from the legislative body is required.
- Legislative election: Judges are selected by the state legislature.
- Municipal government selection: Judges are selected by the governing body of their municipality.
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See also
External links
Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Tennessee State Courts, "GOVERNOR'S COUNCIL FOR JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS," accessed November 17, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 State of Tennessee Executive Order, "Executive Order No. 87," accessed November 17, 2021
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 American Bar Association, "Judicial Selection: The Process of Choosing Judges," June 2008 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "ambaroverview" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ As of June 2021, Oklahoma had two state supreme courts: one for civil matters and one for criminal matters.
- ↑ North Dakota uses this method only for vacancies.
Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Tennessee, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Tennessee, Middle District of Tennessee, Western District of Tennessee
State courts:
Tennessee Supreme Court • Tennessee Court of Appeals • Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals • Tennessee Circuit Court • Tennessee Chancery Courts • Tennessee Criminal Court • Tennessee Probate Court • Tennessee General Sessions Court • Tennessee Juvenile Court • Tennessee Municipal Court
State resources:
Courts in Tennessee • Tennessee judicial elections • Judicial selection in Tennessee
