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Trump Picks Appeals Judges' Children for Courts in Their Circuit
President Donald Trump has nominated two children of judges on the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit who would sit on courts within their jurisdiction, a rarity for the federal judiciary.
Judge Duane Benton presides in Missouri, and Judge Bobby Shepherd serves in Arkansas. Benton’s daughter, Megan, is Trump’s pick for the Western District of Missouri. Shepherd’s son, John, has been tapped for the Western District of Arkansas.
A federal statute, amended in 1998, prevents family members from serving on the same court. Though “it does not preclude family members from serving on different courts, even those within the same circuit,” said John P. Collins, a George Washington law professor who researches judicial nominations.
That amendment in the law governing family members serving together on the bench came three years after President Bill Clinton’s initial 1995 nomination of Ninth Circuit Judge Betty Binns Fletcher’s son, William Fletcher, to the same court.
Following criticism from Senate Republicans, who argued that a mother and son couldn’t serve on the same bench, Betty assumed senior status after William’s confirmation in 1998.
Judge Duane Benton presides in Missouri, and Judge Bobby Shepherd serves in Arkansas. Benton’s daughter, Megan, is Trump’s pick for the Western District of Missouri. Shepherd’s son, John, has been tapped for the Western District of Arkansas.
A federal statute, amended in 1998, prevents family members from serving on the same court. Though “it does not preclude family members from serving on different courts, even those within the same circuit,” said John P. Collins, a George Washington law professor who researches judicial nominations.
That amendment in the law governing family members serving together on the bench came three years after President Bill Clinton’s initial 1995 nomination of Ninth Circuit Judge Betty Binns Fletcher’s son, William Fletcher, to the same court.
Following criticism from Senate Republicans, who argued that a mother and son couldn’t serve on the same bench, Betty assumed senior status after William’s confirmation in 1998.
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/trump-picks-appeals-judges-children-for-courts-in-their-circuit