Candidate Survey Response:

 

1.   What role do you believe a judge plays in our society and government? 

It is the role of the judiciary to administer justice by resolving criminal and civil disputes brought before it in a fair, neutral and consistent way.  When it succeeds, its decisions will be accepted by society. This promotes ordered liberty and a civil society. The Supreme Court is the most visible, authoritative and therefore the most responsible part of the judiciary. 

The decisions of the Supreme Court ought to do the practical business of declaring the law for practitioners and people. Like any court, it should do so in a civil and just manner. Supreme Court decisions should not be opportunities for Justices to advance personal philosophy or political preference.

In deciding cases, the Supreme Court is expounding the law to the lower courts, particularly to the superior courts. Supreme Court decisions are naturally important to the parties in the case. But its decisions are most valuable as declarations of what the law is or means for all of the people of Washington. It provides guidance for trial judges, lawyers and anyone encountering the problem again. In so doing, the court must try to carry out the evident intent and policy decisions of the people’s elected representatives in the legislature.

 

2.    Which current or recent state Supreme Court Justices best reflect your judicial philosophy?  Please explain why. 

Rather than comment on a state Supreme Court Justice, let me identify current United States Chief Justice John Roberts as a jurist I admire and one I hope to emulate.

As a Superior Court judge for nearly 14 years, I have been dedicated to the law, the rights of the people and the Constitution. The judiciary, more than any other branch of government, must not only be just in carrying out its tasks but must be seen to be just.

A Supreme Court Justice should not be an advocate for any party or class of litigants appearing before the Court.  For when they do so – even if the case is correctly decided – society will rightly be suspicious of the outcome. The Court must not overreach its prescribed role in the Constitution. The Supreme Court’s role as a neutral arbiter whose decisions will be accepted by society is compromised when impartiality of its decisions can be questioned. 

Each judge at every level of court must strive to attain the highest ethical standards and have such important personal traits as courage, fairness, empathy, courtesy, diligence, integrity, intelligence and good judgment.

Also required is thoughtful consideration of the practical implications of the Court’s decision and compassion for the human condition. The decisions of the Court are made for flesh and blood people for whom the outcome will have a profound and lasting effect.

Justice Roberts, in my view, is a well-balanced, thoughtful and intelligent Justice who is careful to respect the boundaries of the court’s rightful authority in making his rulings.
 

3.   If you are currently a judge, which of your recent written opinions best reflects your values and skills as a judge?  

I am currently the Presiding Judge of Pierce County Superior Court.  I have been a superior court judge for nearly 14 years.  As I am not currently an appellate court judge, my written opinions are not published in the official reports of the State of Washington but are simply filed in each case. 

4.    If you are not currently a judge, which brief or other written work you¹ve produced best reflects your judicial philosophy and legal skills?

 N/A

5.    Please state your qualifications for judicial office such as your professional, educational, family and community accomplishments.  Continue on back if more space is needed. 

Judge and Lawyer: I am Pierce County Superior Court’s Presiding Judge.  I direct the State’s second-largest trial court with a budget of nearly $14 million. I have successfully solved legal problems as a judge for 14 years and as a lawyer for 19 years more. I have presided over thousands of legal proceedings including: contract rights, personal injury, family and criminal law. As a lawyer, I represented hundreds of working families helping to solve a wide-range of legal problems.  My wife, Jennifer, and I reside in Tacoma, Washington.

Education: University of Washington - Business Administration.  Law degree - University of Puget Sound.
 

6.    May LifePac post your returned survey on its website?

Yes