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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Nebraska’s U.S. Senators Deb Fischer and Ben Sasse announced the application process for filling a forthcoming vacancy in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Last week, Chief Judge William Jay Riley announced he will transition from active service to senior status effective June 30, 2017.

Under the U.S. Constitution, judicial nominations are made by the president “by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate.” Typically, home state senators work with the Office of White House Counsel to identify for the president’s consideration qualified candidates for vacancies on the U.S. circuit courts.  

Senators Fischer and Sasse invite applications from qualified Nebraskans. Individuals interested in applying for the vacancy should review the following details.

Applicants must complete a comprehensive questionnaire detailing a candidate’s background and qualifications. Candidates must respond to all questions, except 20, 22, 23, and 26. Please note that personal financial data will be required at a later date for finalists. This information is required by both the White House and the Senate Committee on the Judiciary before a finalist may move forward in the confirmation process.

All questionnaires should be submitted with a letter of interest. References and letters of recommendation are welcome. The letter of interest, questionnaire, and any accompanying documents must be either emailed to Judicial_Vacancy@fischer.senate.gov and
Judiciary_Vacancy@sasse.senate.gov by March 24, 2017, or postmarked to Senator Fischer’s and Senator Sasse's Washington offices by March 17, 2017. Candidates submitting by mail should address all materials to Senator Fischer at 454 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20510 and Senator Sasse at 386A Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20510.

For questions about these processes, please contact Senator Fischer’s Washington office at 202-224-6551 or Senator Sasse’s Washington office at 202-224-4224.

The questionnaire can be found here.

 

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