“Look at justice candidates’ backgrounds, Branstad told”: Today in The Des Moines Register, Grant Schulte has an article that begins, “Gov. Terry Branstad may want to consider the mix of legal backgrounds before him as he considers whom to tap for the three open seats on the Iowa Supreme Court, legal scholars and lawyers say.”

“N.J. Supreme Court considers journalism shield laws in blogger case”: The Newark Star-Ledger has a news update that begins, “In a courtroom on the eighth floor of the Richard J. Hughes Justice Complex in Trenton today, everyone agreed the internet has changed the face of news gathering and dissemination.”

“US appeals court upholds dismissing OPEC lawsuits; Lawsuits alleged OPEC fixed crude oil, gasoline prices; Court ruled it lacked jurisdiction; Obama administration sided with OPEC over fuel retailers”: Reuters has this report on a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued today.

“4th Circuit Nominee Describes Selection Process”: At “The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times,” David Ingram has a post that begins, “A questionnaire filled out by Judge Henry Floyd, a nominee for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, sheds a little light on how he became a rare cross-party choice for an appellate judgeship.”

“Ginsburg on health care timing: Out of Court, Justice Ginsburg suggests that Virginia will not be allowed to pursue an immediate appeal to challenge the new federal health care law.” Lyle Denniston has this post today at “SCOTUSblog.”

“States Depend on Unapproved Foreign Drugs for Executions; U.S. Shortage of Lethal-Injection Drug Forces Some States to Use Non-FDA Approved Drug”: Ariane de Vogue has this report at ABCNews.com

“On Health Care, Justice Will Prevail”: Law professor Laurence H. Tribe has this op-ed today in The New York Times.

“Federal judicial vacancies reaching crisis point”: Jerry Markon and Shailagh Murray have this front page article today in The Washington Post. A related chart can be accessed here.

“In Arguments on Corporate Speech, the Press Is a Problem”: Adam Liptak has this new installment of his “Sidebar” column in today’s edition of The New York Times.

“Just shy of 40 years together, Rendells call it quits”: This article appears today in The Philadelphia Daily News.

And The Philadelphia Inquirer reports today that “Power Couple Splits.”

The newspapers have reprinted the text of an e-mail that former Gov. Ed Rendell and his wife, federal judge Marjorie O. Rendell, sent to friends yesterday.