Kansas Governor Sam Brownback today announced his nomination of attorney Caleb Stegall to fill the 14th seat on the Kansas Court of Appeals.

“If confirmed by the Senate, Caleb will be one of the most – if not the most – qualified person to sit on the Kansas Court of Appeals in the past decade,” Gov. Brownback said. “His history of academic accomplishment, broad private sector experience and success, commitment to public service, temperament, character and peer support is without equal.”

This position is the first to be filled through the “federal process” approved by the 2013 Kansas Legislature and signed into law by the Governor on July 1, 2013. Brownback formally presented Stegall as his nominee today, nine days in advance of the end of a 60-day period ending Aug. 29, in which the Governor was required to make his appointment.

“I am deeply grateful to and for my wife Ann, my great kids and my parents,” Stegall said in accepting the nomination. “I look forward to working with Governor Brownback and the Senate as we move forward in this process. I am honored to continue serving my fellow Kansans and the state I love.”

Stegall graduated in the top one percent of his class at the University of Kansas School of Law. His considerable legal experience includes serving as Chief Counsel to the Governor since January 2011. He was the top prosecutor in Jefferson County and has represented a wide range of clients including a commitment to those who are less privileged or cannot adequately speak for themselves, including Family Promise of Lawrence, and arranging the release of missionaries held in Haiti following a major earthquake.

(AP) — Republican Gov. Sam Brownback is preparing to announce his choice of a new judge for the Kansas Court of Appeals.

Brownback scheduled a news conference Tuesday in Topeka to introduce his nominee, who will need confirmation by the state Senate.

It is Brownback’s first appointment to the Court of Appeals under a new procedure approved by legislators and signed into law earlier this year. The governor chose from among applicants interviewed by his administration.

Under the old system — still in place for the Kansas Supreme Court — a nominating commission screened applicants and named three finalists, with no role for lawmakers after the governor’s appointment.

Senators will consider the appointment when they meet Sept. 3 in a special session to address the state’s “Hard 50” sentencing law.