Legal Pad

Deal Struck to Confirm Koh to Northern District Bench

[Dan Levine]

A deal has been reached to confirm the first Asian-American Article 3 judge on the Northern District of California bench. Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Lucy Koh will get a floor vote when the U.S. Senate returns from recess June 7, Majority Leader Harry Reid announced Friday.

Koh was recommended for the bench by Sen. Barbara Boxer, and her nomination has been relatively uncontroversial. She would also be the first Korean-American Article III judge in the country, and is expected to sit in San Jose.

There's still no word on Magistrate Judge Edward Chen, who was nominated before Koh but still awaits a floor vote. Senate Republicans have attacked Chen for his work on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union before becoming a magistrate.

Inmates Bring the Rotten Ruckus in S.F. Court Building

[Kate Moser]

Five courtrooms are still closed at San Francisco’s Hall of Justice as of late this afternoon, after jail inmates caused a raw sewage flood when they flushed a bedsheet and two jumpsuits down toilets last Friday. 

Courtrooms 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23 were still closed while the court awaits biohazard test results and the A-OK from the AOC.

The court was scheduling multiple calendars in other courtrooms, with judges hopping on the bench after earlier calendars finished, said court spokeswoman Ann Donlan.

As to any lingering odors, Donlan said, the HOJ is doing alright (but she might have been putting on a brave face): “From what I’ve been told, it smells pretty good down there, all things considered,” she said.

For more on this story, check out SFGate.

Ignore S.F.'s Judge Massullo, and She Will Call You Out

[Kate Moser]

Yikes, you do not want to ignore San Francisco Superior Court Judge Anne-Christine Massullo.

The former federal prosecutor runs a tight ship over at Department 25 in the Hall of Justice, and her displeasure with the DA’s office comes through loud and clear in her order (.pdf) this week on cases related to the SF drug lab scandal. (More on that ruling in a story on The Recorder’s website tonight.)

What Massullo says in just one footnote on page 14:

“The District Attorney’s Office has demonstrated a level of indifference to this Court’s repeated requests for an explanation as to why it failed to disclose Madden’s 2007 arrest and 2008 conviction to the defense. The Office originally represented that it would provide a declaration on point describing the Office’s policies and procedures. No declaration was ever filed. This Court was also promised supplemental briefing, which has not been filed. The District Attorney’s Office’s decision not to provide a declaration or any information, despite the Court’s repeated requests, can only lead this Court to conclude that no procedure, written or otherwise, was in place to insure that all Brady/Giglio information as it relates to convictions or discipline of SFPD employees is provided to the defense.”

Budget Analyst Says Courts Shouldn't Get $100 Million

[Cheryl Miller]

Judicial leaders cheered last week when the governor proposed restoring $100 million siphoned from California’s courts budget in 2009. But today the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office called any funding restoration a bad idea.

The LAO’s analysis of the governor’s revised May budget urges lawmakers to reject his plans to eliminate welfare and child care services for the poor and look instead to public universities, public safety and, yes, trial courts for additional savings.

“These spending reductions — in conjunction with other budget actions — could facilitate maintenance of the state’s core programs,” the report said.

In a separate analysis, the LAO said the judicial branch and the 58 trial courts should all dip into their “significant” reserves instead of relying on $100 million from the state’s general fund.

“Although the trial courts have plans to use some of the unspent funds to implement various projects, we believe that the courts could prioritize the use of the significant fund balances and reserves that would remain to move forward with their highest priority projects and delay those projects deemed to be of lower priority,” the analysis concluded.

AOC Finance Director Stephen Nash today said that he recognizes state budget-writers are faced with some “devastating, huge, horrible, horrible cuts.” But keeping that $100 million is not the answer, he said.

“You could potentially” soak up all the branch and court reserves to keep courts operating, he said, but “In our view, it’s very short-sighted. It doesn’t look at what would happen not only next year but in the years after that” if the $100 million shortfall persisted.

The governor’s courts proposal has not been formally scrutinized yet by legislators.

Elect Me and You'd Get Another Judge Like ...

[Kate Moser]

With one month to go before the June 8 election, candidates for two seats on the SF bench weighed in on which judge they would emulate. Here’s who each one chose at a candidate forum last week, co-sponsored by the Bar Association of San Francisco and The Recorder:

San Francisco prosecutor Harry Dorfman

S.F. Judge Carol Yaggy, “a model of preparation” who takes time to understand lawyers’ arguments, and is patient and measured in the way she talks to lawyers even “in the heat” of the case.

Robert Retana, of the AOC's Office of General Counsel 

S.F. Judge Teri Jackson, a mentor who is “in charge of the courtroom.”

Linda Colfax, a public defender in S.F.

Former S.F. Judge Herb Donaldson, because he treated everybody “with dignity, humanity and respect.”

Jones Day partner Roderick McLeod

Former S.F. Judge William Cahill, “always prepared” and with “a great sense of humor.”

Michael Nava, a staff attorney for California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno

(Again) Donaldson, the first openly gay judge on the San Francisco bench, for his “humility” and “devotion to the idea of serving the people.”

Daniel Dean, senior counsel at San Francisco's Fotouhi Epps Hillger Gilroy

S.F. Judge John Munter, because “he is so prepared and he does such a great job of making sure everything runs quickly and smoothly.”

Judge Richard Ulmer 

S.F. Judge Mary Wiss for her “gentle control of the courtroom.”

Petra Pasternak contributed some reporting to this post

Dan Dean: I Know How to Help San Franciscans

[Kate Moser]

Serving up Guinness at the Irish Bank during Dan Dean’s fundraiser.

Dan Dean, who’s challenging newly-appointed San Francisco Superior Court Judge Richard Ulmer in the June election, is talking up his native San Francisco street cred. 

He walked in to the Irish Bank pub last night for a campaign event and saw his uncle, George, then soon discovered a San Francisco-style six degrees of separation – that George is friends with the pub owners, who coincidentally had contributed their back room for the event. Dean said he loves finding those unexpected connections in his native city. “It’s just the beauty of old-time San Franciscans knowing each other,” he told campaign supporters.

In a heartfelt stump speech, Dean thanked his dad “who’s given me the most financial and emotional support on the campaign.” He also tipped his hat to his opponents, Ulmer and Michael Nava (a staff attorney for California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno), saying all three candidates have years of experience in civil litigation. But what sets him apart, Dean said, is his commitment to community service. “I am helping real people solve their real problems on a daily basis,” he said.

Littler Mendelson shareholder Matthew Marca, who paid the bar tab last night and first got to know the candidate when he hired Dean at his old firm (Taylor Gutierrez Marca), said Dean would bring a “practical, been-there-done-that, common-sense approach to the bench.”

Attorney Appointed to OC Superior

[Cheryl Miller]

An Orange County attorney who has been assisting judges for years will soon be donning a black robe himself.

Glenn Salter, a long-time research attorney in the Fourth District Court of Appeal, was named to the Orange County Superior Court bench by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday. Salter has been managing research attorney of the appellate court’s Division Three since 1999. He was a senior research attorney for the court between 1993 and 1999 and also from 1998 to 1990.

Salter’s resume also includes stints at Singer & Silvergleid; Pillsbury, Madison & Sutro; and Drummy, Garrett, King & Harrison. He also worked as a deputy county counsel in Riverside County and a research attorney in the Orange County Superior Court.

Salter fills a vacancy created when a court commissioner’s post was converted into a judgeship.

Diversity in Law, Starting in Law School

[Dan Levine]

One of the most popular panels at the Northern District’s conference this past weekend concerned diversity in the legal profession.

UCLA Professor Richard Sander did battle with Drucilla Ramey, dean of Golden Gate University School of Law, and Broadcom GC Arthur Chong. Sander argued that grades are an accurate predictor of success in the field, and that law schools do a disservice by admitting less qualified minority applicants, because they will get worse grades, do worse in law firms, and wash out early. Ramey, however, argued that much more goes into the equation than just grades, like latent biases against minority lawyers.

We talked to two Northern District judges, Thelton Henderson and Marilyn Hall Patel, about their own hiring practices and diversity in the court.

Diversity In the Courts from Cal Law on Vimeo.

L.A. Superior Judge Joins Second District

[Cynthia Foster]

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Grimes has been confirmed as a justice on the Second District.

Beverly Hills attorney Cyrus Sinai spoke against confirmation, citing Grimes's "high" reversal rate as a trial judge. Despite his concerns, confirmation was unanimous. For more, check out the Metropolitan News-Enterprise story [via LA Legal Pad].

Incumbent S.F. Judge Secures Key Endorsements

[Kate Moser]

Endorsements from political heavyweights keep rolling in for San Francisco Superior Court Judge Richard Ulmer.

Gavin Newsom and California Democratic Party Chairman John Burton endorsed the incumbent judge today in his bid to keep his seat in the June election.

In a press release Ulmer emphasized his support “from across San Francisco’s political spectrum.”

Ulmer, who was appointed to the bench last June, is being challenged by Daniel Dean, senior counsel at San Francisco's Fotouhi Epps Hillger Gilroy and co-chair of Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom, and Michael Nava, a staff attorney for California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno. 

They opened their campaigns talking about the lack of gay judges being appointed by the governor, and Nava also has made an issue of the fact that Ulmer used to be registered as a Republican.

In other recent political endorsements in the race, State Senator Leland Yee last week backed Nava.