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Tennessee Supreme Court justice vacancy (September 2021)
| Oregon Supreme Court |
|---|
 |
| Clark vacancy |
| Date: September 24, 2021 |
| Status: Seat filled |
| Nomination |
| Nominee: Sarah Campbell |
| Date: January 12, 2022 |
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee (R) appointed Sarah Campbell to the Tennessee Supreme Court on January 12, 2022.[1] Campbell succeeded Justice Cornelia Clark, who passed away from cancer on September 24, 2021.[2] Campbell is Governor Lee's first nominee to the five-member supreme court.
At the time of the vacancy, midterm vacancies on the court were filled by assisted appointment with legislative approval.
Ballotpedia has compiled the following resources on the process to fill the Oregon Supreme Court vacancy:
- An overview of the appointee.
- A list of finalists recommended to the governor.
- A list of candidates who applied to the vacancy.
- An overview of the selection 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 2021.
The appointee
- See also: Sarah Campbell
Before her nomination to the Tennessee Supreme Court, Campbell worked as the state of Tennessee's associate solicitor general and special assistant to the attorney general. Her career experience includes working at the Washington, D.C. law firm Williams & Connolly LLP and clerking for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and 11th Circuit Judge William Pryor.[1]
Campbell earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Tennessee and master's and J.D. degrees from Duke University.[1]
Appointee candidates and nominations
Finalists
At the close of public hearings on December 9, 2021, the Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments selected three finalists for the vacant supreme court seat. The three names forwarded to Gov. Lee for his consideration were:[3]
- Sarah Campbell, associate solicitor general and special assistant to the attorney general, Tennessee Office of the Attorney General
- Kristi Davis, judge, Tennessee Court of Appeals
- William Neal McBrayer, judge, Tennessee Court of Appeals
Applicants
Eleven applicants applied for the vacant seat. The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments held public hearings on December 8 & 9 to consider the applicants.[4]
The 11 applicants were:[4]
- William Blaylock, chief hearing officer, Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development's Unemployment Appeals Tribunal
- Sarah Campbell, associate solicitor general and special assistant to the attorney general, Tennessee Office of the Attorney General
- Kristi Davis, judge, Tennessee Court of Appeals
- Timothy L. Easter, judge, Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals
- Kelvin Jones, judge, Tennessee Twentieth Circuit Court
- William Neal McBrayer, judge, Tennessee Court of Appeals
- J. Douglas Overbey, of counsel, Owings, Wilson & Coleman
- Robert F. Parsley, member, Miller & Martin PLLC
- Jonathan T. Skrmetti, chief deputy attorney general, Tennessee Office of the Attorney General
- Gingeree Smith, attorney
- Jeffrey Usman, law professor, Belmont University College of Law
The selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in Tennessee
As of September 2021, midterm vacancies on the Tennessee Supreme Court were filled via assisted appointment with legislative approval. The appointed justice must stand for retention in the next general election to remain on the bench. Upon winning the retention election, the justice serves a full eight-year term.[5]
Makeup of the court
- See also: Tennessee Supreme Court
Justices
Following Clark's death, the Tennessee Supreme Court included the following members:
| ■ Jeff Bivins | Appointed by Gov. Bill Haslam (R) in 2014 | |
| ■ Holly Kirby | Appointed by Gov. Bill Haslam (R) in 2013 | |
| ■ Sharon Lee | Appointed by Gov. Phil Bredesen (D) in 2008 | |
| ■ Roger A. Page | Appointed by Gov. Bill Haslam (R) in 2016 |
About the court
Founded in 1870, the Tennessee Supreme Court is the state's court of last resort and has five judgeships. The current chief of the court is Holly Kirby. In 2018, the court decided 1,003 cases.
As of September 2024, five judges on the court were appointed by a Republican governor.
The Tennessee Supreme Court meets in Jackson, Knoxville, and Nashville, Tennessee.[6]
In Tennessee, state supreme court justices are selected through assisted appointment with a governor-controlled judicial nominating commission. Justices are appointed by the governor with the assistance of a commission with a majority of members selected by the governor. There are 10 states that use this selection method. To read more about the assisted appointment of judges, click here.
About Justice Clark
- See also: Cornelia Clark
Justice Cornelia Clark was appointed to the Tennessee Supreme Court in 2005 by Governor Phil Bredesen (D). She was subsequently elected to full eight-year terms in 2006 and 2014. In 2010, she became the second woman in Tennessee history to serve as chief justice of the court. She served in that role until 2012.[7]
Before her appointment to the supreme court, Clark's career experience included working as the director of the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts, as a circuit court judge in the 21st Judicial District, and as an attorney in private practice with Farris, Warfield & Kanaday (now Stites & Harbison).[7]
Clark earned a bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University in 1971, a master's degree in teaching from Harvard University in 1972, and a J.D. from Vanderbilt University School of Law in 1979.[7]
Other state supreme court appointments in 2021
- See also: State supreme court vacancies, 2021
The following table lists vacancies on state supreme courts that opened in 2021. Click the link under the Court column for a particular vacancy for more information on that vacancy.
Click here for vacancies that opened in 2020.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Office of the Tennessee Governor, "Gov. Lee Names Tennessee Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeals Appointees," January 12, 2022
- ↑ AP News, "Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Cornelia Clark dies," September 24, 2021
- ↑ [https://www.tncourts.gov/press/2021/12/09/council-sends-three-names-governor-supreme-court-vacancy Tennessee State Courts, "Council sends three names to governor for Supreme Court vacancy," December 9, 2021[
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Tennessee State Courts, "11 Apply for Supreme Court Vacancy," November 19, 2021
- ↑ National Center for State Courts, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Tennessee," accessed September 28, 2021
- ↑ Tennessee State Courts, "About the Supreme Court," accessed August 20, 2021
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Tennessee State Courts, "Cornelia A. Clark," archived September 24, 2021
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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
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