Pileggi said at a news conference that Rendell had disregarded protocol established under the state constitution to reach agreement on judicial nominees through bipartisan collaboration.

"Our central concern is with the way the governor has chosen names," he said. "It's not the right process, not the historical process for filling these very important positions in the state."

Pileggi (R., Delaware) said governors historically had sought the advice of Democrats and Republicans in the Senate before submitting nominees.

He indicated that under the circumstances, it was unlikely that Rendell's nominees would receive the two-thirds majority vote of the Senate needed for confirmation.

Rendell's spokesman, Chuck Ardo, said Senate Republicans were misreading the constitution to say they had a role in choosing judicial nominees.

"They had an opportunity to advise, although in the end the governor decided against them, and now it is time to consent or reject," he said. "If they want more input into the nominating process, they are free to run for governor in the next election."

Pileggi said he would probably schedule a vote this month. If no action is taken by June 11, the nominees are automatically confirmed.

Pileggi's statement came with pressure building on the Senate to confirm Rendell's nominees, who were submitted three months ago.

Last week, Pennsylvania Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille sent a letter urging the Senate to act, praising the nominees and outlining how vacancies have affected court operations.

Yesterday, the 13,000-member Philadelphia Bar Association issued a plea to the Senate to swiftly confirm the nominees, one each to the Supreme Court and Commonwealth Court and two to Superior Court.

"We ask that you end, with all expediency, this stalemate by voting to confirm the four respected jurists and attorneys who have been deemed qualified for interim court appointments by Gov. Rendell," said the group's chancellor, A. Michael Pratt.

Castille said in an interview Monday that the six members of the Supreme Court faced increased workloads and case backlogs.

Pileggi said it was his understanding that Castille's letter had described a "hypothetical problem," a point disputed by court officials. Pileggi said court vacancies had gone unfilled for as long as 17 months in the 1990s.

A spokesman for Castille said the state court system faced problems now as a result of the vacancies.

"From the court's standpoint, this is a very real issue, not a hypothetical one," spokesman L. Stuart Ditzen said.

Rendell's nominee for the Supreme Court is Commonwealth Court Judge James Gardner Colins, a longtime friend and a fellow Democrat.

To Superior Court the governor nominated former interim Supreme Court Justice James J. Fitzgerald III, a Republican who served on the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, and Philadelphia lawyer Robert C. Daniels, also a Republican. Rendell nominated Duquesne

University law professor Ken Gormley, a Democrat, to serve on Commonwealth Court.