If the delay in naming the pro tem justices for the February calendar signified the Supreme Court’s belief that the temporary justices would be unnecessary because the court’s vacancy would soon be filled, the court now apparently feels that, no matter how fast Governor Jerry Brown makes an appointment, there’s not enough time to have a new justice in place for the next oral arguments. (By the way, this is Day 307 since Justice Kathryn Werdegar announced her retirement.) That’s probably true.
Before taking her or his seat on the court, a newly appointed justice must be evaluated by the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation (JNE) and then confirmed by the Commission on Judicial Appointments after a public comment period and hearing. It usually takes about a month for that process.
For Justice Leondra Kruger, the time from her appointment until her confirmation was 28 days. The time between nomination and confirmation for Justice Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar was 37 days. (Yes, there’s a difference between an appointment and a nomination.) Justice Goodwin Liu’s appointment-to-confirmation time was 36 days.
So, to avoid having a seventh consecutive calendar with pro tems in March, the Governor would probably need to make his appointment by the first week of February.