95-year-old Pauline Newman of the US Federal Circuit is the oldest federal judge in the US. She was chosen by President Ronald Reagan.
Some of her coworkers now feel it’s time for her to leave since they are concerned about her mental capacity.
However, Newman is pushing back, starting a legal battle over her reluctance to resign from the lifelong position.
This month, she filed a lawsuit to contest a claim made by a group of her colleagues justices that she is no longer capable of carrying out her duties due to “mental or physical disability.”
Pauline Newman has been a member of the court since 1984
She is as effective as the other members of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, according to Newman, and she is still completely capable of handling cases.
She also claimed that the court panel seeking her dismissal had violated the US Constitution, which states that only Congress has the authority to remove judges from office.
Newman has been a member of the court since 1984. She has authored decisions in a number of important cases and is a prominent expert on intellectual property law.
The panel demanded that Newman should to a neurologist who would determine whether she has cognitive impairment
However, a three-judge judicial panel dismissed Newman’s protests on Tuesday and highlighted the number of instances of what they claimed was her decreased capacities.
“Multiple court staff members have reported concerns that Judge Newman cannot remember from day to day how to perform simple tasks such as logging into the computer network,” they said.
“Numerous personnel who interact with Judge Newman in the course of the court’s business have raised concerns about her comprehension, confusion, short-term memory loss, agitation, and lack of focus,” they added.
The panel demanded that Newman should to a neurologist who would determine whether she has cognitive impairment and undergo a “full battery of neuropsychological testing.”
She was given until May 23 to let the committee know whether she would cooperate or face disciplinary action.
“The litigants whose rights are at stake in the cases before this court deserve to have confidence that the judges ruling on their cases do not suffer from a cognitive impairment,” it said.