Don't like your bankruptcy court judge? Act now or wait 14 years.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit is seeking public comment on whether to reappoint four U.S. Bankruptcy Court judges in Alabama and Florida. All four are on 14-year terms expiring in early 2020. All four are up for another 14-year term.

“Upon reappointment, the incumbent would continue to exercise the jurisdiction of a bankruptcy judge as specified in United States Code title 28, United States Code title 11, and the Bankruptcy Amendment and Federal Judgeship Act of 1984,” the Eleventh Circuit said Friday. “In bankruptcy cases and proceedings referred by the district court, the incumbent would continue to perform the duties of a bankruptcy judge that might include holding status conferences, conducting hearings and trials, making final determinations, entering orders and judgments, and submitting proposed finding of fact and conclusions of law to the district court.”

The Eleventh Circuit invited “members of the bar and the public” to “to submit written comments for consideration by the Court of Appeals concerning the reappointment.” Comments must be sent to Circuit Executive James Gerstenlauer, Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, 56 Forsyth St., N.W. Atlanta, GA 30303. The deadline is July 22.

“If requested, the identity of a respondent to this solicitation will not be divulged without prior consent,” the Eleventh Circuit said. However, the judge “will be provided with a general description of the source and nature of any comments.”

The judges being considered for reappointment are:

  • Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge James Robinson for the Northern District of Alabama at Anniston,
  • U. S. Bankruptcy Judge Tamara Mitchell for the Northern District of Alabama at Birmingham,
  • U.S. Bankruptcy Judge John Olson for the Southern District of Florida at Fort Lauderdale, and
  • Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Laurel Myerson Isicoff for the Southern District of Florida at Miami.

The salary of a bankruptcy judge is approximately $194,000, or 92% of the district court judge salary.