Douglas County District Court Judge Robert Fairchild made the short list to fill a vacancy on the Kansas Supreme Court.

The names of Fairchild and Kansas Court of Appeals judges Lee Johnson and Tom Malone were submitted Thursday to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius by the Supreme Court Nominating Commission.

Sebelius has 60 days to appoint one of the three to the position that will be created by the retirement in January of Justice Donald Allegrucci.

Lawrence lawyer Martha Coffman also had been one of 14 people who applied for the Allegrucci position but she wasn’t forwarded to Sebelius for consideration.

Fairchild had been on the short list in 2005 for another Supreme Court position, but Sebelius picked Eric Rosen.

Fairchild has served as a district court judge since 1996 and was appointed chief judge of the district in 2002. He graduated from Kansas University’s law school in 1973.