Applications for Arizona Supreme Court open

(The Center Square) – The process for replacing outgoing Arizona Supreme Court Justice Robert Brutinel kicked off this week.

Those interested in applying for the role must do so by Nov. 1, as the Commission on Appellate Court Appointments will then bring three names to Gov. Katie Hobbs for her to choose from. It will be her first ever appointment to the court, as all the current justices were selected by her Republican predecessors, Govs. Doug Ducey and Jan Brewer.

Applicants must have lived in the Grand Canyon State for the past decade, a lawyer of “good moral character” and under 65 years old. The high-profile gig will pay $215,000 annually.

“The judge shall demonstrate command of relevant substantive law and procedural rules, impartiality, clarity of oral and written communications, judicial temperament and professionalism upholding public confidence in the legal system and demonstrating appropriate respect for everyone,” the standards state. “Furthermore, the judge shall have possession of the administrative and management skills and work ethic necessary to be productive and efficient.”

The justices are subjected to a retention election every six years, but there is a proposition to get rid of the elections altogether. It also requires 10 to 12 letters of recommendation. Brutinel is retiring on Oct. 31, which sets in motion the 60 day deadline for the commission, and then another 60 day deadline for when the governor has to fill the slot, according to the vacancy announcement.

Brutinel announced his retirement date will be just before the November election, in which two other justices are facing a vote on their own job security. Justices Clint Bolick and Kathryn King are on the ballot in November as campaigns seek to both retain or remove them from the court following a controversial abortion decision. The 4-2 decision in the spring lifted the stay on an abortion law created in 1864 and re-codificed in 1977 that would have been a near-total ban on abortion. The law was repealed by the legislature, and a 15-week law signed in 2022 remains in effect, but could be expanded depended on the results on a ballot initiative.

“The decision to leave the court has not been easy and I will greatly miss the Court’s interesting and challenging work and particularly all the wonderful people with whom I had the pleasure of working,” Brutinel wrote in his retirement letter.