Gov. Manchin Names Commission to Study West Virginia Judiciary

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Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor will serve as honorary chair of a new study of West Virginia’s judiciary commissioned by Gov. Joe Manchin, the governor announced.

Manchin named O’Connor along with the nine voting members of his Independent Commission on Judicial Reform. The panel will look into establishing new courts, appointing judges instead of electing them and other judicial issues.

The appointees include Mary McQueen, president of the National Center for State Courts; former state Justice John McCuskey; retired Kanawha Circuit Judge Andy MacQueen; and former gubernatorial aides Thomas Heywood and Carte Goodwin.

Goodwin, who will officially chair the commission, was lead general counsel for Manchin from his 2005 election until earlier this year. Heywood had been chief of staff to former Gov. Gaston Caperton. Both now practice law in Charleston.

Rounding out the commission are State Bar President Sandra Chapman, prominent Charleston trial lawyer Marvin Masters, and both Dean Joyce McConnell of West Virginia University’s law school and Associate Dean Caprice Roberts.

Seeking a report by Nov. 15, Manchin commissioned the study in an April executive order. He outlined several specific topics for review. They include an intermediate appeals court, a chancery court for handling business disputes, an appointment-based system for selecting judges and justices, and campaign finance and disclosure changes for judicial elections.

West Virginia now holds partisan elections for its judicial offices, and its five-seat Supreme Court is its sole appeals court.

The appointments came a week after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that faulted state Chief Justice Brent Benjamin for refusing to recuse himself from a case in which one of the parties had made large contributions to his election fund.

Benjamin had helped overturn a $50 million civil verdict won against Massey Energy Co. by another coal producer and its president in a contract dispute. Last week’s 5-4 decision by the nation’s highest court cited the $3 million that Massey Chief Executive Don Blankenship spent to help Benjamin get elected in 2004, and said elected judges must step aside from cases when large campaign contributions from interested parties create the appearance of bias.

The Benjamin recusal issue is the latest of several cases that have spurred criticism of West Virginia’s courts.

Business leaders faulted the state Supreme Court last year for denying full appeals for a pair of jury awards totaling $664 million. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and its allies, meanwhile, have repeatedly sought to cast the Mountain State as a haven for meritless lawsuits and unfair jury damage verdicts.

A nonprofit group promoting economic development, West Virginia: A Vision Shared, had recommended a court study and touted O’Connor for an honorary seat. She is expected to advise the commission, while Goodwin would preside over its meetings.

“We are truly honored that Justice Sandra Day O’Connor has accepted my invitation to serve as the Honorary Chairwoman of this important commission,” Manchin said in a statement. “She brings special expertise and a wealth of knowledge to this panel.”