Proceed, Governor

A person nominated by the Governor for a judgeship does not have a right to assume the bench if the appointment process is not completed, according to a decision of the full Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

The plaintiffs, Michael J. McCarthy and Mary-Ellen Manning, filed a complaint in the county court in July, 2013, against the Governor and the Secretary of the Commonwealth, seeking to establish that McCarthy had been nominated, confirmed, and appointed to a Massachusetts judgeship in 2012, and that he is therefore entitled to a commission for that office.

The court

The Governor’s appointment of an individual to judicial office becomes effective “when the last act to be done by the [Governor is] performed.” Marbury v. Madison, supra. See 1 Op. Attorney Gen. 140, 141 (1894). At a minimum, this requires that the Governor communicate unequivocally his determination, informed by the Council’s advice and consent, to exercise the power of appointment. Rep. A.G., Pub. Doc. 12, at 96 (1972) (“Appointment occurs, of course, when the Council has given its advice and consent to the nomination and the judicial commission has been issued” [emphasis added]). The appointment, like the nomination, is highly discretionary, and it is for the Governor and the Governor alone to decide. There is nothing ministerial about the Governor’s decisions to nominate and appoint. Contrast Rep. A.G., Pub. Doc. 12, at 107 (1984) (describing Secretary’s role in judicial appointment process; stating that Secretary “functions in a . . . ministerial manner with respect to gubernatorial appointments”). As stated in Opinion of the Justices, 190 Mass. at 619-620, when the Governor has the power to act, “[t]he act, first of all, and afterwards for all time, is the act of the Governor.”

There is nothing in the record before us to suggest that the Governor took action to appoint McCarthy to the vacant judgeship at any time. To the contrary, the evidence is that the Governor did not proceed with an appointment in any fashion after the vote of the Council on McCarthy’s first nomination on September 26, 2012, or after Manning’s letter on October 17. Instead, he resubmitted the nomination to the Council. Likewise, after the Council’s vote on the second nomination, the Governor indicated that he considered the matter closed. Thus, even if we were to assume for the sake of discussion, as the plaintiffs argue, that the votes of the councillors at the September 26 meeting, supplemented with Manning’s purported vote by letter to the Governor on October 17, combined to constitute the requisite “advice and consent” and the required number of votes in favor of McCarthy’s nomination, we conclude nevertheless that McCarthy did not validly obtain a judgeship.

The full court agreed with a single justice that mandamus and other relief was not available. (Mike Frisch)