The League of Women Voters of New Mexico
Voters' Guide to the 2012 Election
last revised 09.23.2014
last revised 09.23.2014
Vacancies for courts in New Mexico are filled through gubernatorial appointment from a slate of potential nominees submitted by a judicial nominating committee. The newly- appointed judge must then run in a contested, partisan election at the next general election. Thereafter, the judge runs in nonpartisan retention elections for set terms. To be retained a judge must receive at least 57% in affirmative votes cast in the retention election.
Court of Appeals: Partisan Supreme Court: Retention Court of Appeals: Retention
The ten judges on the Court of Appeals are elected by all voters in the state and serve eight-year terms. To be eligible to hold the office of Judge of the Court of Appeals, a person must be 35 years old, have practiced law for at least 10 years, and have resided in New Mexico for the last 3 years. As the intermediate appellate court between the district courts and the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals currently reviews appeals in all cases, except criminal cases involving sentences of death or life imprisonment, appeals from the Public Regulation Commission, and cases involving habeas corpus. The judges sit in panels of three judges to decide cases. Annual salaries: Chief Judge, $126,515.59; Judge, $124,615.59
1. How have your training, professional experience, and interests prepared you to serve on the New Mexico Court of Appeals?
Now in my fourth year as a Court of Appeals Judge, I’ve authored over 100 appellate opinions and participated in over 600 decisions. Extensive judicial experience is rare for a candidate and critically boosts any court’s composition. Preceding judicial service, I represented the United States in appellate litigation for a decade, and served as a writer on the staffs of three federal appeals judges.
2. What improvements are needed in the Court of Appeals and how could those improvements be implemented?
Budgetary constraints remain the overarching issue for all New Mexico courts. My nine colleagues and I, in panels of three, are on pace to resolve about 900 appeals this year from district courts throughout our state. Staff turnover, decreased access to indigent services, and delays to justice are the adverse consequences of overly scant resources. Legislation increasing funding to the judiciary is the solution.
3. What ethical practices are critical to keep the judiciary independent?
Independence of the judiciary suffers primarily due to New Mexico’s adherence to partisan affiliations in judicial elections. Most states have abandoned this model of judicial selection, thereby markedly reducing the capacity of political parties to influence judicial races. Ethically, judges and candidates should strive to avoid party labels whenever possible, certainly in campaign literature and advertisements.
1. How have your training, professional experience, and interests prepared you to serve on the New Mexico Court of Appeals?
I have spent 32 years of intensive practice preparing to be an appellate judge, handling all types of cases, civil and criminal, all over New Mexico for individuals, businesses, and government agencies. I am a Board certified Appellate Specialist, one of only 8 in the state. I care deeply about the people of NM, and getting the law right on their behalf
2. What improvements are needed in the Court of Appeals and how could those improvements be implemented?
My extensive experience will permit me to contribute immediately to swift and fair decision-making. Critical cases which will inevitably end up before the New Mexico Supreme Court should be sent there right away to save time and money and allow the Court of Appeals to focus on cases it must decide.
3. What ethical practices are critical to keep the judiciary independent?
Judges must be immune from political pressure, so I chose to accept public financing for my campaign. This program should be expanded for all judicial races. Judges should avoid any conduct suggesting they have prejudged any issue. And while they should be moderate in all their comments, judges should be active in educating the public about the importance of the judicial system and judicial independence.
The ten judges on the Court of Appeals are elected by all voters in the state and serve eight-year terms. To be eligible to hold the office of Judge of the Court of Appeals, a person must be 35 years old, have practiced law for at least 10 years, and have resided in New Mexico for the last 3 years. As the intermediate appellate court between the district courts and the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals currently reviews appeals in all cases, except criminal cases involving sentences of death or life imprisonment, appeals from the Public Regulation Commission, and cases involving habeas corpus. The judges sit in panels of three judges to decide cases. Annual salaries: Chief Judge, $126,515.59; Judge, $124,615.59
1. How have your training, professional experience, and interests prepared you to serve on the New Mexico Court of Appeals?
Now in my fourth year as a Court of Appeals Judge, I’ve authored over 100 appellate opinions and participated in over 600 decisions. Extensive judicial experience is rare for a candidate and critically boosts any court’s composition. Preceding judicial service, I represented the United States in appellate litigation for a decade, and served as a writer on the staffs of three federal appeals judges.
2. What improvements are needed in the Court of Appeals and how could those improvements be implemented?
Budgetary constraints remain the overarching issue for all New Mexico courts. My nine colleagues and I, in panels of three, are on pace to resolve about 900 appeals this year from district courts throughout our state. Staff turnover, decreased access to indigent services, and delays to justice are the adverse consequences of overly scant resources. Legislation increasing funding to the judiciary is the solution.
3. What ethical practices are critical to keep the judiciary independent?
Independence of the judiciary suffers primarily due to New Mexico’s adherence to partisan affiliations in judicial elections. Most states have abandoned this model of judicial selection, thereby markedly reducing the capacity of political parties to influence judicial races. Ethically, judges and candidates should strive to avoid party labels whenever possible, certainly in campaign literature and advertisements.
1. How have your training, professional experience, and interests prepared you to serve on the New Mexico Court of Appeals?
I have spent 32 years of intensive practice preparing to be an appellate judge, handling all types of cases, civil and criminal, all over New Mexico for individuals, businesses, and government agencies. I am a Board certified Appellate Specialist, one of only 8 in the state. I care deeply about the people of NM, and getting the law right on their behalf
2. What improvements are needed in the Court of Appeals and how could those improvements be implemented?
My extensive experience will permit me to contribute immediately to swift and fair decision-making. Critical cases which will inevitably end up before the New Mexico Supreme Court should be sent there right away to save time and money and allow the Court of Appeals to focus on cases it must decide.
3. What ethical practices are critical to keep the judiciary independent?
Judges must be immune from political pressure, so I chose to accept public financing for my campaign. This program should be expanded for all judicial races. Judges should avoid any conduct suggesting they have prejudged any issue. And while they should be moderate in all their comments, judges should be active in educating the public about the importance of the judicial system and judicial independence.
The Supreme Court consists of five justices and is located in Santa Fe. This is the court of last resort and has superintending control over all lower courts and attorneys licensed in the state and jurisdiction over criminal matters in which the sentence imposed is life in prison or the death penalty, appeals from the Public Regulation Commission, appeals from the granting of writs of habeas corpus, appeals in actions challenging nominations, and removal of public officials. Salary: $131,174.
Court of Appeals: Partisan Supreme Court: Retention Court of Appeals: Retention
1. What attributes and experience do you bring to your service as a New Mexico Supreme Court Justice? (65 words)
I have been a Justice on the New Mexico Supreme Court since March 7, 2003. I received consistently high ratings in my evaluation by the Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission for conducting myself free from impropriety, being fair and impartial, demonstrating knowledge of the law and a strong work ethic. My performance evaluation is available at www.nmjpec.org.
2. Given your experience as a Justice of the New Mexico Supreme Court, what programs or changes would you like to support to improve the Supreme Court system? (65 words)
In addition to being the court of last resort for the laws and Constitution of New Mexico, Justices also have many administrative responsibilities, including superintending control over the entire judiciary. Although guidelines, oversight and accountability are key to an efficient and economical justice system, we must strive to improve the overall funding of the courts and improve alternative dispute resolution methods.
3. From your perspective as a Justice, what ethical practices are critical to keep the judiciary independent? (65 words)
Judicial independence requires judges to be fair and impartial. This means that judges must faithfully uphold the Constitution and laws unconstrained by political fear, fear for physical safety or other undue pressures, and without being influenced by the status of the parties or what is popular. In short, judges must decide the merits of a case without fear or favor.
Voters at a retention election may vote either “yes” or “no” for each individual judge for retention. To retain the office, a judge standing for retention must receive 57% “yes” votes of all the votes cast on the question of retention.
Court of Appeals: Partisan Supreme Court: Retention Court of Appeals: Retention
1. What attributes and experience do you bring to your service as a Judge of the Court of Appeals? (65 words)
Before I became a judge, I practiced law as a State Bar-recognized appellate specialist, and I have been a judge on the Court of Appeals since December 2000. My extensive practice experience and my nearly 14 years of judicial experience have helped me balance my judicial caseload with an eye to fairness, expediency, and accuracy.
2. Given your experience as a Judge of the Court of Appeals, what improvements are needed in the Court of Appeals and how could those improvements be implemented? (65 words)
The Court of Appeals has a large caseload because it hears all appeals in the state except those involving first degree murder, elections, appeals from the Public Regulatory Commission, and a handful of other appeals. Our challenge as judges is to continue managing those appeals in a timely manner.
3. What ethical practices are critical to keep the judiciary independent? (65 words
Judges are bound by the Code of Judicial Conduct, which means that they must act independently of personal or political bias and with integrity. In addition, they must avoid even the appearance of impropriety. Compliance with these criteria is critical to keeping the judiciary independent.
1. What attributes and experience do you bring to your service as a Judge of the Court of Appeals? (65 words)
Prior to being appointed to the Court of Appeals in 2008, I served with distinction as a district court judge. That experience combined with my broad legal background as a lawyer, working for large corporations, owning my own business, and being actively involved as a volunteer all contribute to continuing the tradition of fairness, equality and intellectual rigor on the appellate court.
2. Given your experience as a Judge of the Court of Appeals, what improvements are needed in the Court of Appeals and how could those improvements be implemented? (65 words)
As the only intermediate appellate court serving the entire state, the Court of Appeals reviews appeals in almost all cases. The court effectively manages a caseload of over 900 cases a year. We continually strives to decide cases expeditiously; however, there is always room to improve the timely disposition of cases.
3. What ethical practices are critical to keep the judiciary independent? (65 words
Judicial independence is critical to our system of democracy and necessary to provide balance in our government. Judicial candidates must promote public confidence by demonstrating that they are free from political influence. This is done by scrupulously following the code of judicial conduct, and by never compromising ethics or integrity for any reason.
1. What attributes and experience do you bring to your service as a Judge of the Court of Appeals? (65 words)
I have had the honor to serve the people of our state as a judge for nearly twenty years. I have handled hundreds of cases of all types. Each case is important. I learn from each case and continue to improve my judicial skills. I am a hard worker, and I continually strive to decide each case in a fair, impartial, and timely manner.
2. Given your experience as a Judge of the Court of Appeals, what improvements are needed in the Court of Appeals and how could those improvements be implemented? (65 words)
Resources are always important. The Court is presently in a good position to ensure that all cases are timely decided due to increased staffing. Careful scrutiny of each case will assist us in reaching this goal. We will also be able to increase our efficiency and be more accessible to the public when filings can be made electronically.
3. What ethical practices are critical to keep the judiciary independent? (65 words
Judicial independence is essential to the public’s confidence in our judicial system. Judges must decide cases based on the law and the facts, not other factors. They must avoid the influence of public opinion or fear of criticism and must not allow their personal interests to affect their judgment. To ensure public confidence, judges must respect and honor their position and the public trust.