The Marion County Judicial Selection Committee is beginning the process of selecting two new superior court judges in the Family Division. Chief Justice Loretta Rush, Committee Chairperson, and Court of Appeals Chief Judge Robert Altice, Vice Chairperson, announced applications for the two vacancies are available online and must be submitted through the Indiana Courts Portal by Friday, April 21 at 12:00 p.m. (Eastern).
To be eligible to serve on the Marion Superior Court an applicant must be a resident of Marion County (at the time of the application and throughout the term of office) and be an attorney admitted to the bar of Indiana for at least five years. Additionally, state law prevents more than 52% of the judges in Marion Superior Court from being members of the same political party. See IC 33-33-49-13.4(d).
The vacancies are the result of two upcoming retirements: Judge Elizabeth Ann Christ (Criminal Division) will retire effective April 1, 2023, and Judge Marcel A. Pratt, Jr., (Criminal Division, Traffic Court) will retire effective May 31, 2023. Following a review of caseload allocation and local court rules, the Marion Superior Court Executive Committee decided to transition the two courts vacated by the retiring judges to the Family Division. The Executive Committee offered any sitting judge the opportunity to transfer courts. No judge chose to transfer, so the vacancies are in the Family Division.
The Marion County Judicial Selection Committee intends to meet in Mayto interview applicants for both vacancies. Details on the public interviews will be posted online. After the conclusion of interviews and an executive session to consider applicants, the Committee will publicly vote to select two separate panels of three nominees each, to send to Governor Eric Holcomb for appointment. According to Indiana law, the Committee is required to submit to the Governor “the three most qualified candidates” for appointment when a vacancy arises. Details on the Committee, including membership, are online
