Bolstering the Bench

Adeal between the Bush administration and California’s two Democratic senators to fill vacant federal judgeships could help end years of exasperating gridlock here and serve as a template for other states.

The deal, announced last week by Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, names 24 lawyers, sitting on four panels, to field district court nominees for the state. Presidents traditionally consider recommendations from home state senators in filling these slots, but in California, as in 17 other states, both senators are Democrats. With the Senate leadership now poised to change hands, Republicans may fear that unless Democrats are assured some say in the process they will sit on President Bush’s nominees as the GOP did on those of then-President Bill Clinton. This plan offers a mechanism for bipartisan consensus before names even go to the Senate.

The four panels, each responsible for one of the state’s four judicial districts, will be composed of three Democratic and three Republican members. The panels will settle on three to five possible nominees for each vacancy within its jurisdiction and forward the names to Gerald L. Parsky, a Republican attorney and investment banker, who will chair all four groups. He will then review those names and forward one or more to the White House.

The agreement is a welcome step toward filling seven trial court vacancies in California, five of which are in the federal district court based in Los Angeles, which has jurisdiction over cases from San Luis Obispo south through Orange County and east to the state border.

One welcome aspect of the arrangement is that it will, by its nature, value qualified moderates. Bipartisan panel members are sure to ding anyone far to the right or left, leaving most candidates--to use one federal judge’s football metaphor--”between the 45-yard lines.”

Another benefit: In March, Bush injudiciously eliminated the role of the American Bar Assn., which has historically evaluated judicial candidates prior to the president’s nomination. The new panels will again provide a forum in which to vet potential nominees.

This balancing act will pivot, in large measure, on the integrity of Chairman Parsky in making sure his recommendations to the White House truly reflect the panels’ consensus. If he succeeds, other states should follow California down this path toward ending the long-standing ideological battles that have left far too many federal courtrooms empty for too long.