1. FAIR/IMPARTIAL/ RULES BY THE LAW

As judge, everyone who comes to the Superior Court will be treated fairly and with respect, and, importantly, they will know what to expect.  They will know that my decisions will be based on the law and the rules of the court.  I will not be governed by politics. I will not waver.   

For the justice system to work, the judge must follow the law and the rules.  This necessitates an in-depth understanding of the laws/rules and a commitment to following them, which I have. This is especially true for civil cases where judges have so much discretion to make rulings.  That discretion is enormous. The WA legislature has given judges significant freedom in most civil cases to decide what should be done in a particular situation.  However, the judge must make a just decision based on the guidelines given by the legislature.  As judge, I will follow the law and the Revised Code of Washington guidelines, which will ensure a fair and just result for the community members before me. My extensive experience and range of experience makes me the most qualified candidate running for judge.

I am a scholar and I have the commitment to research.  I understand our current laws and rules of the court.  I have helped people resolve disputes not only in my years as a lawyer, but in my years as a mediator. By having the knowledge and understanding of the justice system, and the knowledge and tools to resolve disputes, I believe I am the best candidate for judge.

2. AN EFFICIENT JUSTICE SYSTEM

Our county continues to grow and our population continues to increase.  In order to accommodate our growing population, an efficient justice system is necessary in order to have a fair justice system.

The citizens in our county must have their cases resolved in a timely manner and their cases shouldn’t remain stagnant sometimes spending years in the court system. Not only do cases sometimes remain stagnant, but often parties do not have any knowledge as to when their cases will be resolved or when their cases will be heard by the judge. 

I am dedicated to making our court system efficient and time sensitive.  For example, when a case is filed, I will generate a scheduling order so that all the parties have expectations of the timing of their case and when they can expect their case to end and have a resolution.  The scheduling order will include deadlines, such as for discovery, mediation, pretrial conferences, etc.to address issues before trial, which should move cases more quickly and efficiently through the court.  

3. EQUAL ACCESS TO JUSTICE

Everyone deserves equal access to justice.  It shouldn’t matter where you live, how much money you have, who you know, or what you look like.   

Equal access to justice also means people of lower or limited income should not be disadvantaged because of their status. In many cases that go through Superior Court, such as civil cases, a party is not entitled to an attorney.  Many litigants in family law cases are pro se, they represent themselves.  In Whitman County Superior Court, in all family law cases, mediation is required before trial before there is a resolution. Most mediators charge between $200-$350 an hour, often not affordable for people of low or limited income.

As judge, I will advocate for a Mediation Clinic for civil law cases.  This mediation clinic will have mediators and attorneys donating their time or working for reduced rate. The clinic would occur once a month.  A party must have a low or limited income to participate in the clinic. 

In addition, we should not have a justice system where the party with the most money wins or the party that files the most motions wins.  For example, what occurs sometimes is that one party files frivolous motion after frivolous motion purposely, causing a case to be much more expensive than necessary, forcing the opposing side to pay much more in attorney fees than they should, and in some cases, causing the other party to give up.  These occurrences must stop so that everyone has a fair shot at justice. I will ensure this kind of  “scorched earth” litigation will be halted.