Professor Kat Macfarlane recently spoke with Bloomberg Law for the article “Chief Judge Sought to Move New Appointee Out of Texas Courthouse.” The article revolved around Chief Judge Alia Moses of a Texas federal trial court’s attempt to reassign a newly appointed judge Ernest Gonzales out of her courthouse to another courthouse over a reported personal issue. The chief judge said the move was due to a conflict of interest, but that conflict has been resolved.
Macfarlane, who studies case assignment procedures, said it’s concerning that such a decision can be made by the chief judge individually with little oversight. Chief judges are not chosen or elected but rather are elevated to the position if they meet certain criteria set by federal law, including being under the age of 65. Still, many courts make decisions on matters like case assignment through consensus, rather than divisive votes.
“It’s absurd to give that much power to one person in the federal system,” Macfarlane said.