We’ll be honest, we’re worried we’re not going to see the type of professional diversity on the Court of Appeals we all know is critical to fair outcomes in our legal system. The Va. Way of filling judicial vacancies is as transparent as a brick wall, but here’s what we know: 1/6
Next week is when we’ll see votes on Court of Appeals nominees. The original 80 applicants have been narrowed down to a list of 16 candidates for the Senate and House to consider appointing to eight open Court of Appeals seats. 2/6
We don’t know the entire “List of 16” and that list will probably NOT be made public. We’re fairly certain it doesn’t include most of the top indigent defense attorneys that applied for a judgeship. 3/6
As of this morning, we expect the final 8 candidates to be publicly interviewed on Tuesday, and a vote by the @VaHouse and @VASenate on Wednesday or Thursday appointing those eight candidates. We may not have much advance notice of who those final eight will be. 4/6
An elite defense att’y’s resume is going to look different than the traditional judge resume. But we need defenders at the top of their field to broaden the perspective of a bench full of former prosecutors. This isn’t about politics or political favors, this is about justice 5/6
URGENT ACTION: call/email leadership—@DickSaslaw @Edwards4VA @EFillerCorn @SenLouiseLucas @RipSullivan48 @C_Herring—with a simple message: professional diversity on the Court of Appeals matters to the people of Virginia because Virginians care about justice! #justiceforwardva 
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