Ahead of the confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court, the American Bar Association (ABA) gave her the nonpartisan organization’s highest rating.
“The American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on the federal judiciary has completed its evaluation of the professional qualifications of Judge Amy Coney Barrett, who has been nominated by the President to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States,” Randall Noel, chairman of the ABA’s standing committee, wrote in a statement. “As you know, the Standing Committee confines its evaluation to the qualities of integrity, professional competence, and judicial temperament. A substantial majority of the standing committee determined that Judge Barrett is ‘Well Qualified,’ and a minority is of the opinion that she is ‘Qualified’ to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. The majority rating represents the Standing Committee’s official rating.”
?? Big: the American Bar Association—what Chuck Schumer has previously called the “gold standard” for evaluating judicial nominees—just gave Amy Coney Barrett its highest rating: “Well Qualified” pic.twitter.com/dT8x6mCin4
— Ben Williamson (@_WilliamsonBen) October 12, 2020
The “well-qualified” rating from the ABA is widely accepted as the “gold standard” litmus test for judicial nominees across the board, from leaders of both parties, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). Judge Barrett’s evaluation by the Senate Judiciary Committee is set to begin on Monday morning. Follow our coverage of her confirmation here.