Bob Egelko writes in the San Francisco Chronicle that, as Governor Brown prepares “to make one of the most consequential appointments of his final term in office, a justice who could shift the ideological balance of the state Supreme Court,” Californians need to “get reacquainted with an institution that impacts the lives of most of the state’s residents.” The piece is a sophisticated look at the court’s past and present.
It might be too late for Justice Kathryn Werdegar’s replacement to be appointed and confirmed in time to participate in the court’s next oral argument calendar, during the first full week of September. But the Governor could still avoid an extended parade of pro tem justices by soon naming his pick. After all, it’s been almost five months since Justice Werdegar announced her plans to retire.