Governor Seeks Summary Judgment in Suit Involving Supreme Court Selection Process
Governor Bredesen’s dispute with the Judicial Selection Committee took another twist this week. The Governor sought summary judgment in a lawsuit challenging the Committee’s resubmission of candidate J. Houston Gordon for the current opening on the State's highest Court. The Governor previously rejected a slate of three candidates including Gordon, asking the Committee to present him with a second slate that included qualified minority candidates. The subsequent list of candidates submitted to the Governor included one minority candidate (Memphis judge D’Army Bailey) but also included Gordon.
In his summary judgment motion, the Governor, represented by the attorney general’s office, contends that allowing the re-nomination of a previously rejected candidate "would nullify or otherwise destroy the express authority of the governor in the statute to rejected the three nominees on the first panel.” The Judicial Selection Committee has remained steadfast in its position to the contrary.
The case is currently pending before Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle.
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