THE EVOLUTION OF APPROACHES TO THE JUDICIAL CORPS FORMATION IN THE US (FROM THE IDEAS OF ALBERT M. KALES TO THE PLAN OF SANDRA D. O'CONNOR)

Abstract

The topic of the article is devoted to the selection of judges in the United States of America, a country that is a good example of the variety of approaches that can be used to form an effective judicial corps. This topic is relevant not only for the US, where even in a relatively recent historical retrospect, individual states tried to choose new models for the selection of judges, but also for other democratic countries, which are currently faced with the issue of building a new or reorganizing the existing format of judicial power on the basis of professionalism, integrity and responsibility to society. The article touches on certain historical moments of the evolution of approaches to the selection of judges in the US. In particular, the path of the development of procedures for the selection of judges is analyzed, which started from the dominant at the beginning of the creation of this state, the gubernatorial appointments of judges to the progressive methods proposed at the beginning of the 20th century by Albert Kales and already in the new millennium by Sandra Day O'Connor, which combined the procedures of individual appointments, popular votes and professional selection by independent bodies. In addition, the article provides a brief author's analysis of the main advantages and disadvantages of the existing methods of selecting judges in the US.