President Bush on May 23 nominated Assistant Attorney General Jay Bybee, a former law professor at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, to fill the Ninth Circuit vacancy created when Judge Procter Hug Jr. took senior status Jan. 1. He became Bush's third nominee for the court.

One of his previous nominees, Hawaii attorney and Republican activist Richard R. Clifton, won unanimous approval from the Judiciary Committee last month. Clifton would succeed Judge Cynthia Holcomb Hall, who took senior status Aug. 31, 1997.

There are two other vacancies on the 28-judge court. Judge James Browning took senior status Sept. 1 of last year, and the late Judge Charles E. Wiggins took senior status Dec. 31, 1996.

There are two other vacancies on the 28-judge court. Judge James Browning took senior status Sept. 1 of last year, and the late Judge Charles E. Wiggins took senior status Dec. 31, 1996.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl was nominated for the Wiggins vacancy at the same time Clifton was nominated, but Kuhl has not received a confirmation hearing, reportedly because Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer will not sign a "blue slip." Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., has declined to schedule confirmation hearings for judicial nominees without the approval of both senators from a nominee's home state.

Kuhl, 48, is a six-year veteran of the Superior Court bench. She previously served in the U.S. Department of Justice as a special assistant to Attorney General William French Smith, and worked in the office of the solicitor general during the Reagan administration.

President Clinton's nominees for the Hall and Wiggins seats, attorneys Joseph Duffy Jr. of Honolulu and Barry Goode of San Francisco, never received confirmation hearings. Goode now serves as legal affairs secretary to Gov. Gray Davis.

Former Los Angeles attorneys John Walter and Percy Anderson were sworn in as district judges earlier this month, leaving four vacancies vacancies on the co.

There are no vacancies.

There is one vacancy in newly created Div. Eight. The names of Los Angeles Superior Court Judges Charles Lee, Richard Rico, and Aurelio Munoz have been sent to the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation as potential appointees to the post.

Fourth District

Divs. One and Div. Two each have a vacancy created by SB 1857, which took effect Jan. 1 of last year. Div. Three has a vacancy created by the June 1, 2001 retirement of Justice Thomas Crosby.

Sixth District

Presiding Justice Christopher Cottle retired Aug. 31 of last year. Justice Patricia Bamattre-Manoukian is the acting presiding justice.

Seats in other districts are filled.

Gov. Gray Davis on June 5 named Deputy Attorney General Zaven V. Sinanian and South Coast Air Quality Management District Senior Deputy Counsel Gloria L. White-Brown to the court, leaving 16 vacancies. Both were sworn in this month.

Sinanian replaces Judge David Perez, who retired last Oct. 6. White-Brown succeeds Judge Laurence Rubin, who was elevated to the Court of Appeal on Oct. 22.

The most recent openings resulted from the June 1 retirement of Judge Leslie Light, the May 10 resignation of Judge Debra Yang to become U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, and the retirement of Judge Ann Kough May 15.

Judge J.D. Smith retired April 4 and Judge James Albracht April 6.

Judge Jerold Krieger died Feb. 15. Judges Michael Pirosh and John Gunn retired in February. Judges David Finkel and Elvira Austin retired in January.

Four judges who retired last year have not been replaced. Elva Soper left office Oct. 1, Richard Charvat Nov. 5, James Simpson-retired for disability-Dec. 10, and Harold Shabo Dec. 31.

Two judges who were elevated last year to the Court of Appeal have also not been replaced--Paul Boland, who became a justice on Nov. 21, and Judith Ashmann-Gerst, confirmed on Dec. 7.

Further vacancies are scheduled with the retirements of Judge Thomas R. Simpson on Monday and Judge Theodore D. Piatt July 31 and William Garner Sept. 24.

The court is without the services of Judge Robert Sandoval, who is suffering from liver cancer but has said he expects to return to the bench; Judge Pamela Rogers, who had neck surgery last October; and Judge Juleann Cathey, who has applied for disability retirement.

Also, Judge Aurelio Munoz has been assigned to the Court of Appeal through the end of July.

Retired Judge Lillian Stevens is filling in for Sandoval in Burbank.

Jane Godfrey, formerly a referee, and Michael Levanas, an attorney in private practice, were elected commissioners last month. Deputy Federal Public Defender Richard Novak won a runoff election for a third position in balloting that ended June 20.

The three new commissioners fill vacancies resulting from the retirements of Commissioners Linda Elliott, Jeffrey Castner, and David Stephens, all on March 31.

Commissioner Ernest Lopez retired June 24. Balloting for his seat will be completed next month.

The following legislation was acted upon by the Legislature in June:

•AB 2033, by Assemblyman Robert Pacheco, R-City of Industry, which would extend the law allowing nonerasable optical image reproduction of a writing to be introduced in court as proof of a writing. The bill was amended June 18 to state that it would be operative on the date that the secretary of state adopts uniform standards for storing and recording documents in electronic media. The bill was approved by the Senate on a 36-0 vote June 20, passed the Assembly on a 78-0 vote June 24 and was sent to the governor.

•AB 2055, by Assemblyman Robert Pacheco, R-City of Industry, which would eliminate the "work product" protection for lawyers "when a lawyer is suspected of crime or fraud in any official investigation or proceeding or action brought by a public prosecutor ... if the services of the lawyer were sought or obtained to enable or aid anyone to commit or plan to commit a crime or fraud." The bill was amended June 19 to specify that if signed, it would take effect immediately, rather than on Jan. 1, 2003. The bill was approved by the Senate Public Safety Committee on a 5-0 vote June 11 and was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

•AB 2106, by Assemblyman Russ Bogh, R-Yucaipa, which would provide that when multiple criminal offenses occur in more than one jurisdictional territory, and the offenses are part of a single scheme or terrorist attack, the jurisdiction of any of those offenses is in any jurisdiction where at least one of those offenses occurred. The bill passed the Senate Public Safety Committee on a 4-0 vote June 4, passed the Senate on a 38-0 vote June 10 and was sent to the governor.

•AB 2263, by Assemblywoman Christine Kehoe, D-San Diego, which would require the Judicial Council to study the effectiveness of expanding the Kids' Turn program, which assists children while their parents are in family court obtaining a divorce or legal separation. The bill was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee on a 4-2 vote June 19 and was sent to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

•ACA 15 , by Assemblyman Howard Wayne, D-San Diego, a proposed constitutional amendment to delete obsolete references to the municipal courts from the California Constitution. The measure passed the Senate Constitutional Amendments Committee on a 4-0 vote June 24 and was sent to the Senate floor.

•SB 1316, by the Senate Judiciary Committee, which would make numerous changes in the law to account for the abolition of the municipal courts. The bill passed the Assembly Judiciary Committee on a 12-0 vote June 17 and was sent to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

•SB 1325, by Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, which would conform California practice with respect to challenging personal jurisdiction to the practice under Rule 12(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The bill was approved by the Assembly on a 77-0 vote June 10 and was signed by the governor June 20.

•SB 1371, by Sen. Bill Morrow, R-Oceanside, which would consolidate two court reporting statutes to clarify that a transcript in longhand is to be provided to a nonparty if he is entitled to receive the transcript, whether or not he was entitled to attend the proceeding. The bill was approved by the Assembly on a 77-0 vote June 10 and was signed by the governor June 20.

•SB 1396, by Sen. Joseph Dunn, D-Garden Grove, which would enact the Superior Court Law Enforcement Act of 2002, and would among other things require the presiding judge of any county to develop an annual court security plan. The bill was approved by the Assembly Judiciary Committee on a 12-0 vote June 11 and was sent to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

•SB 1459, by Sen. Gloria Romero, D-Monterey Park, which, among other things, would make any person who has resigned from the State Bar, regardless of whether charges were pending, guilty of a crime if that person advertises or holds himself out as being entitled to practice law. The bill was approved by the Senate on a 27-7 vote June 10, passed the Assembly Judiciary Committee on a 12-0 vote June 25 and was sent to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

•SB 1559, by Sen. Liz Figueroa, D-Fremont, which would extend indefinitely a statute which allows minors under the age of 13 to testify via closed-circuit television in cases in which the minor is a victim of a sex crime or violent felony. The bill was approved by the Assembly Public Safety Committee on a 6-0 vote June 12, passed the Assembly on a 77-0 vote June 20, and was sent to the governor.

•SB 1628, by Sen. Byron Sher, D-San Jose, which would require a court to award reasonable attorney's fees to an attorney general, district attorney or city attorney who prevails in a civil action to enforce an environmental law. The bill was approved by the Assembly Judiciary Committee on a 13-0 vote June 18, and was sent to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

•SB 1897, by Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Los Angeles, which would provide that the chief trial counsel of the State Bar shall serve under the Regulation, Admission, and Discipline Oversight Committee of the State Bar Board of Governors. The bill was approved by the Assembly Judiciary Committee on an 11-0 vote June 25 and was sent to the Assembly floor.