The District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission (the “Commission”) has issued a Notice of Final Rulemaking (“Notice”) in Volume 66, No. 47 of the District of Columbia Register, adopting a new Chapter 21 (Judicial Nomination Commission) of Title 28 (Corrections, Courts, and Criminal Justice) of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations. The Notice is available at: https://dcregs.dc.gov/default.aspx. 

The purposes of this rulemaking include to clarify ambiguities in the procedures relating to the status of applicants on judicial nomination lists. When there is a District of Columbia court judicial vacancy, the Commission, following an application and background check process, selects three candidates and recommends those candidates on a list sent to the President, who nominates one of the Commission’s recommended candidates. If the President does not nominate a candidate within sixty (60) days of receiving the list, then the Commission nominates a candidate from the list. Candidates must be confirmed by the Senate before being appointed to a judicial office.

The procedures in the Home Rule Act are ambiguous as to what happens when the Senate fails to confirm a nominee or returns a nomination. Accordingly, the Commission is promulgating these rules to clarify the procedure to be followed when the Senate fails to confirm or returns a nomination. The rulemaking specifies that when the Senate rejects, returns, or fails to take action on a nomination by the end of a Senate session, the nomination will be deemed rejected, and the President will have sixty (60) days to make another nomination. If the President does not make another nomination within sixty (60) days, the list of candidates for the vacancy is deemed expired, and the Commission submits another list to the President, starting the application process anew. The rulemaking also codifies what constitutes a quorum for the adoption of an action by the Commission. 

Any questions concerning the Notice of Final Rulemaking should be directed to the Commission at (202) 879-0478 or [email protected].