AUGUSTA – The Legislature’s Judiciary Committee on Tuesday unanimously endorsed the nomination of Bangor lawyer Warren M. Silver to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.

“I am overwhelmed,” Silver, 57, of Bangor said after hearing his fellow attorneys’ comments in support of his nomination.

No one opposed his nomination at the hour-long hearing.

A date for the Senate confirmation vote has not been set.

Gov. John E. Baldacci last month nominated Silver to replace Associate Justice Paul L. Rudman, 70, of Veazie, who will resign from the state’s high court on July 1.

A graduate of Presque Isle High School and Tufts University, Silver received his law degree from the American University College of Law in 1973 and set up his practice in Bangor four years later. Silver’s client list includes best-selling author Stephen King of Bangor.

“Over the past 28 years, it has become clear to everyone in Bangor that Warren is honest and has a great deal of integrity,” Kurt Adams, chief legal counsel to the governor and representing Baldacci before the Judiciary Committee, said Tuesday. “Regardless of whether he represents an internationally famous person, a police officer taken advantage of by the system, or a victim of an auto accident, Warren works hard for his clients and brings them great results.”

In his statement to the committee, Silver, who has served on the governor’s Judicial Selection Committee, said that he was honored and humbled by his nomination.

“I pledge to you today that I will prejudge no legal issue,” he said. “If confirmed, I will review all facts and the law as passed by the Legislature and will do my best to understand and interpret the intent of the Legislature in passing those laws. If confirmed, I will work collaboratively with the other six judges on the court, and I look forward to open and honest communication with my colleagues.

“In my work on judicial selection,” he continued, “I have become convinced that diversity of background among judges is very positive. The current members of the supreme court reflect such diversity. Some have served on all three levels of the state court system, two have served as judges on two levels of the state court, with one coming directly from the District Court to the supreme court. Several have come directly to the supreme court from private practice, as I would, if confirmed.”

Rep. Roger Sherman, R-Hodgdon and a member of the committee, asked the nominee whether the supreme court would not be better served by someone with judicial experience.

Silver said that as someone from private practice, he could bring a fresh perspective to the court. He added that his familiarity with how to process cases and be efficient in processing cases would be valuable in the high court’s administrative role in overseeing the state’s judicial system.

Representatives from the Maine Trial Lawyers’ Association and the Maine State Bar Association endorsed Silver’s nomination.

Even attorneys who have opposed the Presque Isle native in court urged his confirmation.

Attorney Geraldine G. “Gigi” Sanchez of Portland told committee members that in her experience representing big corporations, Silver’s willingness to listen to opposing counsel was “remarkable.” She said that she learned from Silver that it is OK to agree to disagree and move on.

“Every time I’ve ever had any interaction with this gentleman attorney from Bangor,” she said, “he has given me a lesson that I’ve incorporated and benefited from, and certainly, my clients have.”

Others representing the state’s legal community said that Silver’s intelligence, humility, sense of humor, common sense, conviction and knowledge of the law qualified him for the bench. He also was praised for the free legal work he has done for Maine migrant workers and others who could not afford to pay legal fees.

Bangor attorney Dawn Pelletier, who was born and raised in Madawaska, added another trait to the nominee’s list of attributes – Aroostook County native.

Daniel Wathen, who resigned from the court in 2001, was the last County native to serve on the high court, she told the committee.

“It is time we filled this gap,” she said. “There’s a grounding that can only be acquired by getting up at 4 o’clock in the morning and working from dawn till dusk every day for three weeks a year picking potatoes. This grounding gives people a balance, a work ethic and good common sense. These are all qualities that Warren has.”

Sherman, in casting his vote for the nominee, said that “as a County boy who picked potatoes, I can only vote yes,” despite his earlier questions.

After the hearing, Silver said that if confirmed, he would begin work on Aug. 1 and work from Rudman’s office at the Penobscot County Courthouse in Bangor.