Yesterday, Governor Christie announced his nominations to fill the Supreme Court seat that had been occupied by Justice Wallace and the seat the Justice Long will soon vacate as she turns 70. The Senate had agreed to consider a nominee to fill the Wallace seat in March of this year, when Justice Wallace would have turned 70. Governor Christie’s nominees are Phillip Kwon, 44, a First Assistant Attorney General, and Bruce Harris, 61, the Mayor of Chatham Borough.
Much has been made about the diversity angle in these nominations, and deservedly so. Currently, the Court has no minority members. Kwon is Asian-American, and would be the first Asian-American to sit on the Supreme Court. Harris is African-American and gay to boot. Only two other African-Americans, Justices Coleman and Wallace, have sat on the Court. No self-identified gay person has ever done so.
The nominees are, however, more than the sum of their membership in minority groups. Kwon was an Assistant United States Attorney, an associate at LeBouef, Lamb, Leiby & McRae, and a law clerk to United States District Court Judge Harold Ackerman. He is a graduate of Rutgers-Newark Law School, where he was on the Law Review. A Yale Law School graduate, Harris is currently at Greenberg Traurig and was previously at Riker, Danzig, Scherer, Hyland & Perretti. Facially, both nominees have fine resumes.
The Governor’s nominations honor the informal compact that maintains partisan balance on the Court. Harris is a Republican, while Kwon has not declared a party. That would mean that the Court would have three Republicans, two Democrats, and two independents.
Some other observations. South Jerseyans who wanted to see someone from their region on the Court are doubtless disappointed. While Justices Wallace and Rivera-Soto sat, South Jersey had two Justices. Through most of the Court’s history, however, including as the Court is currently constituted, there have been no South Jersey Justices, or at most one.
Those who had favored Justices with judicial experience also did not get their wish. Once Justice Long retires, only Justice Hoens will have had prior judicial experience.
Those who like to keep score will find many scores to keep. Kwon would be the second former Assistant U.S. Attorney on the Court (Chief Justice Rabner is the other). Harris would be the second Justice whose history includes Riker Danzig, joining Justice Patterson in that regard. The Court’s current female majority would fade as Justice Long retires and Judge Wefing is replaced with a permanent appointee, leaving three female Justices. Three Justices, Justices Albin, Patterson and Harris, would have come directly from private practice to the Court. The analysis could go on and on.
Stay tuned as the nominees undergo the confirmation process. There is more to learn about them.