Thirteen judges and lawyers who applied for an opening on the Court of Appeals of Indiana will be interviewed by the Judicial Nominating Commission on May 7-8 in Room 319 of the State House.

Thursday, May 7
9:00 a.m. – 9:45 a.m. – Executive Session
10:00 a.m. – 10:20 a.m. – Mr. Jason W. Bennett
10:20 a.m. – 10:40 a.m. – Hon. James D. Worton
10:40 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. – Ms. Erin L. Berger
Break
11:15 a.m. – 11:35 a.m. – Mr. Joby D. Jerrells
11:35 a.m. – 11:55 a.m. – Mr. Abraham A. Navarro
Lunch and Executive Session
1:30 p.m. – 1:50 p.m. – Hon. Matthew L. Headley
1:50 p.m. – 2:10 p.m. – Mr. Terry W. Tolliver
2:10 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. – Ms. Crystal G. Rowe
Break
2:45 p.m. – 3:05 p.m. – Hon. Peter R. Foley
3:05 p.m. – 3:25 p.m. – Hon. Kevin M. Barton
Break
3:40 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. – Executive Session

Friday, May 8
9:30 a.m. – 9:50 a.m. – Ms. Lisa G. Reger
9:50 a.m. – 10:10 a.m. – Ms. Leanna K. Weissmann
10:10 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. – Hon. Lakshmi Y. Reddy
Break
10:45 a.m. – Executive Session followed by public vote

Members of the audience are asked to refrain from activities that might distract from the interview process. Questioning of the applicants is reserved for the Commission with the following guidelines:

Enter and exit the room only between interviews Set up audio/video recording equipment in between interviews (no mult box provided) Artificial lighting shall not be used Media/public may interview the applicants before/after Commission’s interview outside Room 319 at the applicant’s discretionApplications, along with writing samples, transcripts, and letters of recommendation are a matter of public record now that the Commission has announced the interview schedule. Redacted applications are available online.

Interviews were originally announced as taking place on April 8. Due to the social distancing required to slow the spread of COVID-19, the interviews have been rescheduled for May 7-8. The Commission will meet in executive session on April 8 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. to consider applications. The May interviews are open to the public; should adjustments be required based on social distancing measures, the public will be notified.

The vacancy is the result of the retirement of Court of Appeals Judge John G. Baker in Summer 2020. According to the Indiana Constitution and state statute, the seven-member Judicial Nominating Commission must recruit and select candidates to fill vacancies on Indiana appellate courts. With Chief Justice Loretta H. Rush as chair, the Commission includes three lawyers elected by their peers and three citizen-members appointed by the Governor.

A second round of interviews will take place at a later date. Following the interviews, the Commission will publicly vote to select the three most qualified candidates in an executive session and submit them to Governor Eric Holcomb, who has 60 days from receiving the list to select Indiana's next Court of Appeals judge.