On this date in “How Appealing” history: Two years ago today, on February 16, 2004, I had this vocabulary quiz courtesy of First Circuit Judge Bruce M. Selya. The answers appear here.

“Selection of Alito has lessons for us; How the Americans appoint a Supreme Court judge engenders respect for the judicial body”: In Friday’s edition of The Australian, James McConville has an op-ed that begins, “The American system of confirmation hearings for the judges of their Supreme Court is frequently criticised, but is that criticism warranted? On close examination, confirmation hearings might be a method of selecting judges which is superior to the process used in Australia.”

“Fees ruling rattles law firms as big losses loom”: Friday’s edition of The Age of Melbourne, Australia contains an article that begins, “A Supreme Court ruling has put law firms that defer fees until they win a case at risk of massive unrecoverable losses, lawyers warn.”

In news from Australia: Friday’s edition of The Age of Melbourne contains articles headlined “Abortion pill on its way soon“; “Doctors first in line to seek RU486 use“; “After the battle the winning women drink a toast, decorously“; “Agony, lack of access linger for country women“; and “Medical groups applaud passing of pill bill.” A news analysis is headlined “Conscience vote damages Abbott, enhances Costello.” And an editorial is entitled “What a difference genuine debate makes.”

Friday’s edition of The Sydney Morning Herald, meanwhile, contains articles headlined “Abbott’s $60m to counter abortion” and “A rare day when the party lines fell away.” A news analysis is headlined “The bitterness behind a civil debate; The vote on RU486 has widened underlying divisions in the Liberal Party.” An editorial is entitled “Beyond the RU486 vote.” And Harriet Veitch has an op-ed entitled “Can I order a soy latte with two sugars and an abortion pill, please?”

“Attorney has memorable time at U.S. Supreme Court”: This article appears today in The Princeton (Minn.) Union-Eagle.

“Investigator’s past being examined in execution cases”: David Kravets of The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “The investigator accused of fabricating juror statements in a bid to win clemency for a man condemned to die Tuesday is under investigation for previous cases she worked on for a state agency that defends death row inmates.”

Relatedly, via “Crime and Federalism,” you can access here an explanatory letter from attorney David A. Senior, appointed counsel for death row inmate Michael Morales.

“Policing Porn Is Not Part of Job Description; Montgomery Homeland Security Officers Reassigned After Library Incident”: This article will appear Friday in The Washington Post.

“9th Circuit Takes Hard Line on Secret Deals”: Justin Scheck has this article online at law.com.

“Tap Dance: Alberto Gonzales’s absurd performance.” Law Professor Jeffrey Rosen will have this essay in the February 27, 2006 issue of The New Republic.

“Sheriff’s department: It was an accident.” The Corpus Christi Caller-Times provides a news update that begins, “The Kenedy County Sheriff’s Department released an incident report Thursday confirming Vice President Dick Cheney’s shooting of a fellow hunter as accidental.” The incident report can be accessed here.

“Victim’s Colleague in Moussaoui Jury Pool”: The Associated Press provides this report.

“I just sent my final manuscript to my editor to get sent to copyediting.” Jeremy Blachman’s book based on his “Anonymous Lawyer” weblog is now complete, he reports in a post that you can access here. Maybe soon it will be a major motion picture.

“3rd Circuit Deeply Split Over Post-Booker Sentencing Issues”: Shannon P. Duffy has this update (free access) online at The Legal Intelligencer.

“I know that some people think that professors and students — and especially law professors and law students — are especially in need of sex aids, but it’s nice to see that under Georgia law they actually get a special entitlement to them!” At “The Volokh Conspiracy,” Eugene Volokh has this post about yesterday’s ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, which I noted yesterday at this link.

“Twilight of the Blogs: Are they over as a business?” Daniel Gross has this moneybox essay online at Slate.

“Trustee to take high court seat”: The Penn State Collegian today contains an article that begins, “The state Senate voted 46-1 yesterday to confirm Penn State Board of Trustees Chairwoman Cynthia Baldwin to a two-year term as a justice on the state Supreme Court.” Baldwin replaces former Justice Russell M. Nigro, who (as noted in this earlier post) lost a retention election due to voter backlash over a pay raise received by Pennsylvania state legislators and judges and therefore had to depart from the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania at the end of 2005.

“State appeals court upholds New York’s marriage law”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “A midlevel state appeals court on Thursday upheld the state’s marriage law as constitutional, handing a defeat to same-sex couples seeking to be married in New York.”

Today’s ruling of the New York State Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department, can be accessed here.

“Justice Scalia Pulls Out the Old ‘I’m With Stupid’ T-Shirt”: Nan Aron has this item today at “The Huffington Post.”

“Justice Alito to Be Thrown in Head First”: Gina Holland of The Associated Press provides this humorously-headlined report.

And at “SCOTUSblog,” Lyle Denniston has a post titled “It takes 4 minutes to be a Justice.” (After a lifetime of striving, of course.)

Photos of today’s festivities at the U.S. Supreme Court, and also of villagers fleeing from their homes in the Ugandan county of Alito, can be accessed via this link.

“Transactions Specialist Tapped For 9th Circuit”: Today in The Daily Journal of California, Lawrence Hurley has an article that begins, “Torrance-based transactions attorney Milan D. Smith Jr. is the second moderate Republican President George W. Bush has nominated to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in as many weeks.”

Today in The Oakland Tribune, Josh Richman reports that “Bush fills vacant judge position; President nominates Oregon senator’s brother to 9th U.S. Circuit Court.” Indeed, Ninth Circuit nominee Milan D. Smith, Jr. is the brother of U.S. Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR).

And the Ninth Circuit’s Public Information Office has issued a news release entitled “Attorney Milan D. Smith Nominated to Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.”

“Can flag-burner sue? Judge says intent key.” The Deseret Morning News today contains an article that begins, “Was it boredom or a political statement that motivated a Salt Lake County man to burn a ‘smiley face’ into a U.S. flag? On Wednesday a federal judge said the answer to that question could be key in determining if Kris Winsness can seek damages against the Salt Lake County sheriff’s deputy who issued him a citation.”

“Homeland security chief in dark about Hawai’i”: The Honolulu Advertiser today contains an article that begins, “Embattled Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said yesterday that he didn’t know Hawai’i was the only state not protected by U.S. Northern Command, which is responsible for homeland defense. Sen. Daniel K. Akaka, D-Hawai’i, who was questioning Chertoff on the issue, said he was ‘stunned’ at his admission.”

“Judge Orders Action on Spying Documents”: The Associated Press provides this report.

“2 e-mailers get testy, and hundreds read every word”: The Boston Globe today contains an article that begins, “Once again, a friendly reminder: The next time you’re tempted to send a nasty, exasperated, or snippy e-mail, pause, take a deep breath, and think again. Then consider the tale of local lawyers William A. Korman and Dianna L. Abdala.”

And The Boston Herald today contains an article headlined “Law 101: Put it in writing? E-mail war heats up Internet.”

My earlier coverage is here.

“Eid appointed to Supreme Court; Gov. Owens calls her conservative and a ‘strict constructionist'”: This article appears today in The Rocky Mountain News.

And The Denver Post reports today that “Governor names Eid to high court; The 41-year-old, now serving as Colorado’s solicitor general, was a clerk for Clarence Thomas and worked for William Bennett.”

My earlier coverage is here, while “PrawfsBlawg” offers a post by Paul Horwitz titled “A Federalist on the (State) Supreme Court.”

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia grants preliminary injunction ordering the expedited processing and release of agency records regarding the Bush Administration’s policy of conducting surveillance of domestic communications without the prior authorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court: You can access today’s ruling at this link. The decision is a victory for the Electronic Privacy Information Center.

“Supreme Chaos: The Politics of Judicial Confirmation and the Culture War.” The speech that former Fifth Circuit Judge Charles W. Pickering, Sr. delivered yesterday at The Heritage Foundation, in connection with his new book, can now be viewed online, on demand in both RealPlayer and mp3 formats.

“Court Veteran Remembers a Scary Start”: Today in The New York Times, Linda Greenhouse has an article that begins, “No one will blame Justice Stephen G. Breyer if he flashes back more than 11 years to his own challenging start on the Supreme Court when Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. is ceremonially sworn in there on Thursday.”

Presumably either tomorrow or next Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court will announce whether any of the cases already argued this Term, before Justice Sandra Day O’Connor retired from service, will be reargued or affirmed by an equally divided Court.

“Clemency flap puts Starr in spotlight again; Apparently bogus documents mar his bid to halt execution”: Bob Egelko has this article today in The San Francisco Chronicle.

In cartoons available online from The San Francisco Chronicle: The new installment of Mark Fiore’s animated cartoon is entitled “Gonzalez, Watchu and Howe.”

And the final frame of the new installment of Don Asmussen’s “Bad Reporter” cartoon contains a headline reporting that “Liberals Suddenly O.K. with Judge Scalia Hunting with Cheney.”

“Court favors Ehrlich on ban; Rejection of Sun’s challenge upheld”: The Baltimore Sun today contains an article that begins, “A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals handed The Sun a defeat yesterday in its lawsuit against Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. that challenged his ban on talking with two Sun reporters.” My earlier coverage can be accessed here.

“Dead Judges’ Voting: When Does Life Tenure End?” That’s the provisional title of the next installment of my weekly “On Appeal” column for law.com, which will appear online tomorrow night. The column addresses in greater detail what I originally blogged about here. Thanks to all the readers who emailed to me useful tidbits of information in response to that post.

“Gonzales Looks Back on a Year as Attorney General”: This segment (RealPlayer required) appeared on today’s broadcast of NPR‘s “Morning Edition.”

“Calif. Court Sides with Jackson’s Ex-Wife”: Reuters provides this report.

And The Associated Press reports that “Court Voids Rowe’s Loss of Parental Rights.”

You can access yesterday’s ruling of the California Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District in In re Marriage of Deborah and Michael J. Jackson at this link.

Supreme Court of California to announce decision today in Proposition 77 redistricting case: The question presented can be accessed here. The ruling will be announced at 1 p.m. eastern time. You can learn more about Proposition 77 via this link.

Update: The ruling can be accessed here.