Mar 12, 2004 -- Battles over the appointment of federal judges are as old as the republic itself, but recently they have intensified. Few things are more important to the functioning of a constitutional democracy, particularly one that gives courts the power of judicial review, than how judges are selected. Jurocracy and Distrust: Reconsidering the Federal Judicial Appointments Process will gather leading academics to assess the law and politics surrounding this issue at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law of Yeshiva University at 55 Fifth Avenue at 12th St. The symposium is on Monday, March 22 from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm and is free to the public with advance reservations. To register call 212-790-0355 or email waller_michelle@yahoo.com. The full symposium schedule and list of panelists can be viewed at www.cardozo.yu.edu. At 10am, panelists will focus on the criteria for judicial selection. What considerations should, or should not, enter into the President's and the Senate's consideration of potential judges? Panelists will offer historical, legal, and political perspectives on such issues as the relevance of ideology and of jurisprudential, racial, or other types of balance. In recent months, the President has made two recess appointments and may make more; the Senate has filibustered several nominees. Serious constitutional questions exist about these powerful tactics. At 1:30pm, the second panel turns to the constitutional law of judicial selection and will review the constitutional limits on these two tools, as well as the general nature of the Senate's advice and consent role. The symposium will conclude with a panel beginning at 3:15pm devoted to possible reforms. There is no shortage of proposals for improving the process and avoiding the current deadlock, including creation of screening panels, bipartisan nominating commissions, or various supermajority requirements. Panelists will address the most promising of these. Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law is well-known for its prolific and high-profile faculty as well as top-ranked programs in intellectual property, corporate and criminal law, entertainment and communications law, legal theory, and Jewish law. The Law School’s clinical program has been cited as one of the best in the country. Cardozo has graduated nearly 8,000 students since its founding in 1976.