Task force looks
at 3 divisions
for 9th Circuit
The new plan responds to
By Pete Pichaske
earlier opposition to
splitting up the court
Star-BulletinWASHINGTON -- A commission set up by Congress to study the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has recommended dividing the court into three parts.
But the panel's draft report rejected the idea of splitting the court into separate circuits, a notion that has been pushed for years by mountain state lawmakers who say the ninth is too large, too liberal and too dominated by California.
The ninth is the largest of the nation's federal appeals courts and has the biggest workload. It encompasses nine states, including Hawaii, and the Pacific islands.
The commission, set up after Congress could not agree on whether or how to split the court, recommended three divisions instead of a full split.
Hawaii would be in the Middle Division, along with northern California, Nevada and the Pacific islands.
The Northern Division would include Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington, while the Southern Division would include southern California and Arizona.
Each division "would function as a semi-autonomous decisional unit," hearing appeals from courts in its area, the commission recommended. A "Circuit Division" would be set up to resolve any "inter-divisional conflicts" in rulings.
The commission's preliminary report, released yesterday, will be open for public comment until Nov. 6. The final recommendations must be sent to Congress by Dec. 19.
Hawaii's legal and political communities consistently have opposed efforts to split the court, saying tiny Hawaii likely would be lumped into a circuit with giant California.
They greeted yesterday's recommendations with some skepticism.
"I'm not sure whether that plays out well or not," said Honolulu attorney Sidney Ayabe, former president of the Hawaii Bar Association.
"We still believe retention of the 9th circuit intact would be more favorable for Hawaii. I'm not sure this (division) would be favorable for us. We could be dominated by California."
"The commission has come up with an interesting fix," said Sen. Daniel Akaka. He said the bar association, and any other "interested parties," should weigh in with their comments before the commission finalizes its recommendations.
