What it takes

Here’s what it takes to be eligible for either of the two U.S. Magistrate Judge positions that will open in Idaho in 2008: “To be qualified for appointment an applicant must:

(1) Be, and have been for at least five years, a member in good standing of the bar of the highest court of a state … and have been engaged in the active practice of law for a period of at least five years….

(2) Be competent to perform all duties of the office; be of good moral character; be emotionally stable and mature; be committed to equal justice under the law; be in good health; be patient and courteous; and be capable of deliberation and decisiveness;

(3) Be less than seventy (70) years old; and

(4) Not be related by blood or marriage to a judge of the district court.”

There will also be review by a merit selection panel, an FBI full-field investigation and an IRS tax check. The term of office is eight years, and pay is $151,984. Applications are due by Aug. 31st at 5 p.m.