NASHVILLE (AP) — A Tennessee panel is accepting applications to fill the vacancy that will be left by Justice Sharon Lee's planned retirement next summer.

The Governor's Council for Judicial Appointments says applicants must be at least 35 years old, a state resident for at least five years and a resident of the Eastern Tennessee Grand Division.

Applications are due by midday on Dec. 12. Instructions on how to apply can be found at www.tncourts.gov/administration/judicial-resources.

Applicants will be interviewed on Jan. 4 at the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy in Knoxville.

Lee is the only remaining justice on the five-member court to be appointed by a Democrat. She has announced that her last day will be Aug. 31, 2023.