Conley

Flanders

The process of selecting the next chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court officially kicked off yesterday with a letter from Governor Carcieri to the head of the commission that will select nominees for the high-powered position.

Carcieri’s letter to Stephen J. Carlotti, chairman of the Judicial Nominating Commission, officially starts the move to replace Chief Justice Frank J. Williams, who announced his retirement last week.

Meanwhile, more names surfaced as potential contenders. Among those to publicly express interest are former Supreme Court Associate Justice Robert G. Flanders, and lawyer, developer and historian Patrick T. Conley. Associate Justice Maureen McKenna Goldberg, who will assume the chief justice’s duties until Williams’ successor is named, also acknowledged she will probably seek the permanent post.

“I will in all likelihood be a candidate,” Goldberg said. But she said she planned to use time remaining until Williams steps down on Dec. 30 to commemorate his service.

“The judiciary is in very good condition right now and I kind of want to keep it like that,” she said, adding, “I think Rhode Island can say goodbye to Frank Williams knowing he kept the house in good order, as Lincoln would say.”

The four sitting Supreme Court justices are considered top aspirants for the lifetime post. Associate Justice William P. Robinson has also voiced interest.

The Judicial Nominating Commission will now advertise the opening in The Providence Journal, Rhode Island Lawyers’ Weekly, The Providence American, and other papers.

The commission will interview select applicants in open forum. A public hearing will be held allowing community members the opportunity to speak for and against the candidates, Carlotti said.

The commission has 90 days to submit the names of three to five candidates to Governor Carcieri, who will then have 21 days to forward a nominee to the General Assembly, Carlotti said.

The House and Senate must act on the governor’s selection within a week. If either chamber rejects the nominee, the commission must then submit a new list of three to five names to the governor.

Carlotti said he had not been approached by any potential candidates and that he could not comment on the matter if he had. “I’m not at liberty to disclose anything,” Carlotti said.

On Monday, Flanders confirmed he is seriously thinking about making a bid. Flanders, who had become known for his keen intellect, sharp writing and frequent dissents during eight years on the state’s high court, stunned the legal community in 2004 by resigning.

“I am very happy doing what I am doing,”said Flanders, a partner in the law firm of Hinckley Allen & Snyder, and chairman of the state Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education. But, “Sure, I am thinking of it,” he said. “It’s a critical position for the state, and it’s obviously something that I know something about from having served up there and I am getting asked a lot of questions about it, so I can’t help but think about it.”

Flanders, 59, said he had not spoken to Governor Carcieri, a fellow Republican, about his potential chances should he apply. “You don’t do something like that lightly,” he said.

Conley gave the Journal a copy of the letter and resumé he sent to Carlotti.

“I can’t imagine anyone more qualified than me to be chief justice, quite frankly,” Conley, 70, said. He named as attributes his devotion to the study of the Rhode Island Constitution and his experience arguing constitutional issues before the state’s high court.

His interest in history, legal training and business experience would be well suited for the position overseeing the judiciary, he said.

“I don’t think politicians elevated to law-related office ought to be primary candidates for the chief justice,” he said. “It should be knowledge of the law and Constitution.”

Other names circulating as possibilities include U.S. Attorney Robert Clark Corrente, a Republican appointee; and Superior Court Judges Robert D. Krause and O. Rogeriee Thompson.

With reports from Katherine Gregg of the State House Bureau

kmulvane@projo.com