The Caribbean Bar Association joins the Black Lawyers of Miami in expressing concern over delay in confirming Federal Judges in Florida
MIAMI – The Caribbean Bar Association joins the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. Bar Association, the NAACP, the Gwen S. Cherry Black Women Lawyers Association, and the Haitian Lawyers Association in expressing concern about the unexplained and inexcusable delay in confirming judges in Florida’s Federal District Courts.
Accordingly, the CBA urges Senator Marco Rubio and the remaining members of the Senate to proceed with all deliberate speed to consider and vote upon pending nominees to fill the judicial vacancies in the Southern and Middle Districts of Florida.
Florida’s Federal trial courts are in a state of crisis because of an overwhelming number of judicial vacancies. To date, there are four vacancies in Florida’s Federal trial courts and two additional vacancies projected by the end of the year. The seat to which Judge Brian Davis has been nominated has been vacant for over 612 days and his nomination has been pending for over 16 months. The seat to which Judge William Thomas has been nominated has been vacant for over 570 days and his nomination has been pending for over 10 months. No explanation has been offered to the community for the delay in bringing these candidates up for a vote before the Judiciary Committee and the full Senate.
Our community cannot afford continued unexplained delays in the confirmation of judicial nominees. Based upon the high number of weighted filings per judge, the nonpartisan Administrative Office of the United States Courts has declared judicial emergencies in both the Middle and Southern Districts of Florida. This state of emergency in the judiciary has real consequences for our local communities. As caseloads increase, judges must delay action on civil cases in order to ensure that criminal cases are resolved in the time required by law. As a result, businesses seeking to enforce contracts and individuals seeking redress for claim of discrimination see justice delayed or even denied as their cases linger on overloaded dockets.
The CBA urges Senator Rubio to allow the confirmation process to proceed. The citizens of Florida are entitled to a fully staffed judiciary and should not have to wait any longer. If the Senator has no objection to these pending nominees, he should submit his blue slip and allow voting on these candidates to proceed.
If the Senator has concerns about these nominees, he should state his concerns so that they may be addressed transparently or, if necessary, so that new nominees may be submitted to fill the vacant seats.
Finally, if Senator Rubio does not act, we request that the Judiciary Committee move forward with the confirmation process in the absence of the Senator Rubio’s blue slips.
