Each HC should keep the appointment to two to five ad-hoc judges and not exceed 10% of the total sanctioned strength, the bench said.

The Supreme Court said its directions in the April 2021 judgement, which spoke about the 20 per cent vacancy requirement, be kept in abeyance.

Maria Elena Cruz, a state appeals court judge, is the first Latina and first Black Arizonan to serve on the state’s most influential bench.

Gov. Katie Hobbs on Monday placed the first Latina and the first Black ever on the Arizona Supreme Court. While in private practice, Cruz also served as a judge for the Cocopah Indian Tribe before being elected to Yuma County Superior Court in 2008.

The appointment of Maria Elena Cruz broadens the racial, geographic and political diversity of the seven-member, Republican-dominated court.