WASHINGTON — District officials are urging Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to call for votes on nominees to the chronically overwhelmed D.C. courts amid a rush by Democrats to confirm as many federal judges as possible in the remaining weeks of the session.
As of Wednesday, 10 of President Joe Biden’s nominees have been reported favorably out of committee and await a vote by the full senate. The nominees would fill eight vacancies on the D.C. Superior Court and two on the D.C. Court of Appeals that have in some cases sat open for years – most notably a seat on the appellate court that has been vacant since 2013.
The D.C. Superior Court is the city’s local court that handles most adult civil and criminal matters along with all juvenile cases. Unlike other jurisdictions where judges are elected by voters or appointed by a mayor or governor, D.C.’s unique status as a federal district means all judges must be nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate just like other federal judges around the country. The lengthy and often politically-contentious process has left D.C.’s local courts down as many as 14 judges earlier this year as they struggled under a swollen caseload caused by the COVID-era backlog and a major uptick in juvenile crimes last year. WUSA9 reported in June that the two calendar judges assigned to juvenile court had more than 1,200 cases on their docket between them.
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Last week, the chief judges from both courts and the D.C. Council sent separate letters to Schumer urging him to prioritize addressing the city’s judicial vacancy crisis. The letters, obtained by WUSA9, say two more retirements are already planned for 2025 that will further exacerbate the problem if Schumer doesn’t act.
In a statement to WUSA9, D.C. Courts spokesman Doug Buchanan said the courts were urging Schumer to act before it’s too late.
“It is vital to the residents and visitors of Washington, D.C., that these ten highly qualified judicial nominees receive a vote on the United States Senate Floor before the New Year,” Buchanan said. “Each of the nominees have cleared all the hurdles – expect for the last one. Each of them would help immensely in addressing the long and sustaining judicial vacancy crisis that has plagued the D.C. Courts for years – while helping to reduce the exorbitant caseloads being carried by each of our current judges.”
If not confirmed, Biden’s nominees will expire at the end of his presidency and any new nominations by president-elect Donald Trump will have to go through the same lengthy confirmation process as those candidates now awaiting a vote in the Senate.
Business in the Senate slowed to a crawl this week as Democrats who control the chamber resumed votes to confirm judges for the first time since the election. Republicans, led by incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), have forced lengthy procedural votes that have dragged on for hours. The effort has been spurred on by Trump, who prodded his party to continue on the social media site X, formerly Twitter, writing, “No more Judges confirmed before Inauguration Day!”
WUSA9 reached out to Schumer’s office Wednesday seeking comment on whether D.C. Courts nominees would be called for a vote before the full chamber, but did not receive a response.