Applications are now available for Indiana Supreme Court

Chief Justice Loretta H. Rush announced an upcoming vacancy on the Indiana Supreme Court. She encourages interested judges and lawyers to consider applying. Applications are due by February 4 at 12:00 p.m. (Eastern).

The position on the state’s highest court is available with the fall 2022 retirement of Justice Steven David, who is stepping down from the bench after nearly 30 years as a judicial branch leader. Justice David was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2010.

Applications to fill Justice David’s seat will be considered by the seven-member Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission. With Chief Justice Loretta Rush as chair, the Commission includes three lawyers elected by their peers and three citizen members appointed by the Governor.

A candidate for the vacancy must be an Indiana resident and have been a member of the Indiana Bar for at least ten years or served as an Indiana judge for five years. The application, which must be submitted through the Indiana Courts Portal and to the Judicial Nominating Commission, contains pertinent background information, writing samples, references, educational transcripts, and letters of recommendation.

The Commission will conduct public interviews of qualified candidates in late February/early March. Finalists will undergo a second round of interviews in April. After deliberating in an executive session, the Commission will publicly vote to send the three most qualified names to Governor Eric Holcomb. The Governor will have 60 days to select Indiana’s next Supreme Court justice from the three names submitted by the Commission.

Details on the Commission, including membership, are online. Those interested in applying may contact Staff Attorney to the Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission, Luba Gore at [email protected].