By: jackie.sauter

The Appellate Judicial Nominating Commission has deemed three of the six applicants for Judge Sally Adkins’ former Court of Special Appeals seat qualified for the job.

Adkins was elevated to the Court of Appeals in June. Her replacement must be from the same appellate circuit she is from, which covers Caroline, Cecil, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s, Somerset, Talbot, Wicomico and Worcester counties.

Six people applied for the seat: Michelle Barnes, Elise Davis, Robert J. Greenleaf, Christopher Burlee Kehoe, Victor H. Laws, III and Leah J. Seaton.

The three whose names the commission has passed on to the governor are Kehoe, Laws and Seaton. Kehoe is a lawyer with Ewing, Dietz, Fountain & Kehoe P.A. in Easton (Eastern Shore types and appellate judge aficionados will recall that he also applied for the Court of Appeals seat that went to Adkins), Laws is a federal magistrate judge and attorney with Laws & Robertson in Salisbury and Seaton is the Wicomico County Master for Domestic Relations and Juvenile Cases.

The governor will now consider the applicants and make his decision.

CARYN TAMBER, Legal Affairs Writer