tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post4189250487569541951..comments2024-03-25T20:06:39.794-05:00Comments on Grits for Breakfast: The Judicial Immunity Community: 5th Circuit shuts down attorney suits over court appointmentsGritsforbreakfasthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-19791179507394260342009-04-21T13:22:00.000-05:002009-04-21T13:22:00.000-05:00Here in Dallas, a Judge recently attached to an em...Here in Dallas, a Judge recently attached to an email public info that showed something interesting. It showed that although there was a court appointment wheel, very few courts used it. There was a list you could make it on, but good luck getting any calls. The most interesting part of the email was that the majority of court appointments went to "docket movers" and/or plea machines. It opened a lot of eyes, and the coordinators who circumvented the wheel were not happy. Alas, no changes have occurred. I guess you can't sue to remedy the situation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-30006735092153234722009-04-20T15:58:00.000-05:002009-04-20T15:58:00.000-05:00"But I wonder, if the courts won't allow civil sui..."But I wonder, if the courts won't allow civil suits when judges violate the Fair Defense Act in their appointments, how can that law be reasonably enforced?"<br /><br />The FDA says that an attorney will be included on the wheel if s/he meets the objective qualifications established in that county and a majority of the judges approve the application. It does not say that attorneys shall be included on the list automatically if they meet the objective qualifications, or that judges are required to vote for any attorney who meets the qualifications -- one who had tried 5 or more death penalty trials but slept through one or more of those, for example. TFDP did not take the position that the judges violated the FDA by basing their decision to admit lawyers to the wheel or not based on attorney performance in addition to objective qualifications. <br /><br />Several counties are working to increase the transparency of the wheel process by informing lawyers why they were not included on the wheel and, if applicable, how they can cure any concerns. At least some of counties started these efforts before any litigation was filed and from what I've heard have been pleased with the results. Hopefully more counties will look into this option.Andrea Marshnoreply@blogger.com