On April 25, Chancellor William B. Chandler III formally notified the Governor that he will be retiring. The Chancellor has been serving on the Court of Chancery since 1989, and it will be hard to imagine the Court without his presence.
That leaves the Court with a vacancy for the Chancellor position. If, as has been speculated, a Vice Chancellor were to apply and be selected, a Vice Chancellor position would subsequently open up. So this could be an eventful year for Court of Chancery appointments.
In Delaware, candidates apply to a Judicial Nominating Committee, which selects three names to forward to the Governor. Andre G. Bouchard, a well-known corporate litigator at the boutique firm of Bouchard, Margules & Friedlander, P.A., currently chairs the committee. The Governor typically chooses one of the three to nominate, after which the nomination is forwarded to the Delaware Senate.
Because of Delaware constitutional requirements of political balance, if the nominee is not a current Vice Chancellor or Delaware Supreme Court justice, the nominee must be Republican. Of course, if a Democratic former Vice Chancellor were confirmed as Chancellor, his replacement would then have to be a Republican.
Interestingly, though, for the Court of Chancery there is no requirement of political balance. Thus, while the Chancellor resides in Sussex County, his replacement can be from any Delaware county.
Filed under: Court of Chancery
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