We are grateful – and the federal bench and bar must be too – because on January 27, 2016, the Senate voted and confirmed John Michael Vasquez, who joins the honored few to serve under Article III of the U.S. Constitution. His confirmation fills one of the four seats that were empty prior to his nomination. Reportedly, Judge Vasquez has been sworn in, and his chambers will be located in Newark.
The confirmation of Judge Vasquez culminated after implementation of the procedures set forth in the Constitution and early acts of Congress. Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution and various Acts of Congress bestow the President with the power to select a Nominee to fill a vacant judgeship. Once the President chooses a Nominee, that individual is referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee for evaluation.
Next, the Committee evaluates the Nominee, holds a hearing, and determines whether to report the Nominee to the full Senate. The Senate will then debate the nomination. A Senator may, at any point, request unanimous consent to end debate and move to vote on the Nominee. A single objection to this request will result in a "hold" and require a cloture motion to be filed to end debate and move to a vote. Cloture motions require 51 votes to pass, after which the full Senate will vote on the confirmation and a majority is required for confirmation.
Why do we appreciate this recent confirmation? Thanks to the addition of one more judge in the District, we can conclude that our clients' motions and cases will be adjudicated a little more quickly than we would have previously expected.
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