US Senate top Republican McConnell criticizes anti 'judge shopping' policy
By Nate Raymond
(Reuters) — U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday criticized adoption of a federal policy designed to curb the practice of «judge shopping» used by conservative litigants to steer cases challenging President Joe Biden's agenda to judges perceived as sympathetic.
McConnell in remarks delivered on the Senate floor urged the U.S. Judicial Conference, the judiciary's policymaking body, to reconsider a policy it adopted on Tuesday designed to ensure cases challenging federal and state laws are randomly assigned judges.
«This will have no practical effect in the venues favored by liberal activists, but Democrats are still salivating at the possibility of shutting down access to justice in the venues favored by conservatives,» McConnell said.
He called it an «unforced error» by the 26-member Judicial Conference, which conservative Chief U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Roberts presides over, and said district courts should weigh what is best for their jurisdictions, «not half-baked 'guidance' that just does Washington Democrats' bidding.»
The new policy will require lawsuits seeking to block federal or state laws to be assigned a judge randomly throughout a federal district, rather than staying within the specific court, or division, in which they were filed.
Local court rules had allowed conservatives and others to target small courthouses in Texas with as few one judge, essentially enabling them to effectively choose judges who have reliably ruled in their favor on issues like abortion, immigration and gun control.
The tactic gained national attention after conservative litigants filed a lawsuit before U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk — an appointee of President Donald Trump — in the
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