U.S. BANKRUPTCY JUDGESHIP VACANCIES
District of Delaware

    Chief Judge D. Brooks Smith of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit announces the application process for two bankruptcy judgeships in the District of Delaware, seated in Wilmington.  A bankruptcy judge is appointed to a 14-year term pursuant to 28 U.S.C.  § 152.  
    
    To be qualified for appointment an applicant must:

(a)    Be a member in good standing of the bar of the highest court of at least one state, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and a member in good     standing of every other bar of which they are members.  

(b)    (1) Possess, and have a reputation for, integrity and good character; (2) possess, and have     demonstrated, a commitment to equal justice under the law; (3) possess, and have     demonstrated, outstanding legal ability and competence; (4) indicate by demeanor,     character, and personality that the applicant would exhibit judicial temperament if     appointed; and (5) be of sound physical and mental health sufficient to perform the     essential duties of the office.

(c)     Not be related by blood or marriage to (1) a judge of the United States Court of Appeals     for the Third Circuit; (2) a member of the Judicial Council of the Third Circuit; or (3) a     judge of the district court to be served, within the degrees specified in 28 U.S.C. § 458, at     the time of the initial appointment.

(d)    Have been engaged in the active practice of law for a period of at least five years.  The     Judicial Council may consider other suitable legal experience as a substitute for the active     practice of law.  
    
    The selection process will be confidential and competitive.  At present, the annual salary for this position is $199,088.  Persons shall be considered without regard to race, color, sex, gender, gender identity, pregnancy, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age (40 years and over), or disability.  The name of the person selected will be submitted to the Director of the Administrative Office, who shall request background reports by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  In addition, a nominee for a bankruptcy judgeship may be required by the court of appeals to complete a preliminary disclosure statement.  The disclosure must be filed with the court of appeals and will be considered confidential.  The individual selected must comply with the financial disclosure requirements pursuant to the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, Pub. L. No. 95-521, 92 Stat. 1824 (1978) (codified as amended at 5 U.S.C. app. §§ 101-111).

    The application process is entirely automated. No paper applications will be accepted.  Applications must be submitted electronically by noon on May 15, 2020.  Applications must be submitted only by the potential nominee personally.  To apply, go to www.ca3.uscourts.gov for more information or call the Circuit Executive’s Office at 215-597-0718.

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania is cognizant of the fact that public health authorities recommend social distancing as a means of slowing the spread of novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”). See Court Notice for additional information. Conducting hearings telephonically, where practical and appropriate, will reduce the quantity and frequency of gatherings at the Court.
Please read the atached order.

Chief Judge D. Brooks Smith of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit announces the application process for a bankruptcy judgeship in the Middle District of Pennsylvania, seated in Wilkes-Barre.  For more information on qualifications and the application process, see the posting.

Third Circuit Task Force on Eyewitness Identifications Releases Its Report and Best-Practice Recommendations
Chief Judge D. Brooks Smith of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has announced the release of the “2019 Report of the Third Circuit Task Force on Eyewitness Identifications.” The Report was recently published in the Temple Law Review, 92 TEMP. L. REV. 1 (2019), and is available for viewing at https://www.templelawreview.org/lawreview/assets/uploads/2020/01/Third-C....
On September 9, 2016, then Chief Judge Theodore A. McKee appointed a group of prominent judges, lawyers, scholars, and members of the law enforcement community to serve on the Third Circuit Task Force on Eyewitness Identifications. The Task Force was co-chaired by Judge McKee of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals and Judge Mitchell S. Goldberg of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The Task Force was created, in part, in response to scientific developments in the field of eyewitness identification and a recognition that some courts have taken note of these developments and applied them in a number of criminal cases. The Task Force was charged with making recommendations to promote more reliable practices for eyewitness investigation and to effectively deter unnecessarily suggestive identification procedures, which raise the risk of wrongful convictions. Eyewitness misidentification is considered the single greatest source of wrongful convictions in the United States. At the time the Task Force was formed, no other federal court had undertaken a project aimed at examining the issues raised by eyewitness identification.
In conducting its comprehensive review of the research and scholarship in the field of eyewitness identification, the Task Force held meetings both as a whole and in subcommittees. It eventually drafted provisional reports of its findings, ultimately adopting its 2019 Report setting forth detailed recommendations on best practices to minimize the risk of an erroneous eyewitness identification. The recommendations set forth in the Report include: lineups and photo arrays should be administered “double-blind” or, where that is not practical, at least blinded; standard preliminary instructions should be adopted, reduced to writing, and given to a witness before any identification procedure; witnesses should be physically separated from other witnesses during the entire identification process; witnesses should be instructed not to discuss the matters about which they have been interviewed with one another, and to avoid media and social media accounts of the event; and all law enforcement departments should require training in appropriate procedures for enhancing the probability of an accurate eyewitness identification decision. As the Report concludes, adopting best practices can minimize the risk of a misidentification at the start of the criminal justice process, which is critical before a case reaches a jury trial because jurors seldom are aware that eyewitness identifications may be unreliable.
Many courts, legislators, prosecutors, and law enforcement agencies have studied the scientific research and already implemented reforms. Judge McKee, as Co-Chair of the Task Force, has expressed the hope that the 2019 Report of the Third Circuit Eyewitness Identifications Task Force will spur further study and reform, which in turn will “help to advance the continuing effort to reduce erroneous convictions based upon inaccurate eyewitness identifications."