SC lawmakers approve changes to judge selection process; now head to governor

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - South Carolina is one of just two states where the legislature elects judges, in a process critics claim could give lawyers who are also lawmakers an unfair advantage in the courtroom — or, at the very least, create the perception of one.

Now a bill to change that process will soon be on the governor’s desk, but it is by no means the overhaul some wanted to see.

The bill was approved Wednesday in the final minutes of what could likely be the General Assembly’s last day in session until after the November election, following two public meetings among negotiators that day and more hours of backroom discussions between them.

Lawmakers said they tried to strike a balance in the face of disagreements, inside and outside the State House, over how much reform is needed, if any at all.

“Some have argued that it isn’t broken, and some have argued that it needs to be thrown out,” Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Luke Rankin, R – Horry, said after negotiators struck their compromise between legislation passed earlier this year in the Senate and in the House of Representatives.

Rankin is also the current chair of the Judicial Merit Selection Commission, or JMSC, the panel that screens most judicial candidates and was the focus of many of the tweaks made in the bill.

The legislation would expand the JMSC’s membership from 10 members to 12, four of whom would be appointed by the governor, who currently appoints none of them and has no role in the judicial selection process.

It would impose term limits on JMSC members for the first time, while still allowing lawyers who are also legislators to serve on the committee, a ban some critics wanted to see enacted.

The proposal would prohibit most current members of the judicial screening panel from serving on this revamped version, with the current chair and vice-chair excluded, along with any members who have served fewer than four years.

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, R – Edgefield and a member of the negotiation committee, told reporters part of the goal is to bring new blood and ideas to the screening process.

“Some of the criticism has been that you have JMSC members who hold grudges against candidates, and then they can enact some type of revenge when those judicial candidates come back again,” Massey said. “… I’m not going to call out any names, but I think it’s good to get new people on the commission.”

Under the current system, the screening panel can advance the names of up to three finalists for each seat to the full legislature for its consideration.

This bill would raise that cap to six finalists while giving lawmakers more time to review them before they hold elections and before candidates can try to earn their votes.

Both the House and the Senate made concessions to reach this compromise.

Senators gave up a provision that would have required a candidate earn a majority of votes in both the 124-member House and the 46-member Senate to win a seat, keeping the current requirement that they simply earn a majority of votes in the entire 170-member legislature.

The House dropped a proposal to screen magistrate candidates, a selection senators entirely control.

House Judiciary Committee Chair Weston Newton, R – Beaufort and a member of negotiating committee, said the idea could not garner enough support to pass in the upper chamber.

“We did not want to miss the opportunity to have meaningful reform in the way we elect and select judges in the state over that issue,” Newton said.

But Massey said magistrate reform of some fashion isn’t off the table.

“I think that is something that is likely going to be talked about into the future, especially if we continue to have problems in that area, there’s going to be more conversation,” he said.

Gov. Henry McMaster has previously expressed his desire to sign a judicial reform bill into law but said its fate would depend on the details.

His spokesman said Thursday the governor will review and make a decision on this bill when it reaches his desk.

Feel more informed, prepared, and connected with WIS. For more free content like this, subscribe to our email newsletter, and download our apps. Have feedback that can help us improve? Click here.

Copyright 2024 WIS. All rights reserved.