To the Editor:
Sarah Kaltsounis’ article Law Clerks’ Top 10 Tips for Effective Appellate Advocacy should not be limited to the appellate court. It provided excellent advice for superior court summary judgment practice as well. The only distinction is superior court judges are without law clerks, and will be checking the accuracy of the case authority and the record themselves. Throughout the years, I have accumulated my own tips. If any law firms or agencies would be interested in a brown bag session on the subject, I would be happy to oblige, as I’m sure would many of my colleagues.
Judge Laura Inveen
King County Superior Court
To the Editor:
I decided not to seek the King County Bar Association’s (KCBA) endorsement for Federal Way municipal court judge. Two of the three justices of our state Supreme Court that stood for election last year also declined to be interviewed by the KCBA. I am willing to have my qualifications to be Federal Way’s first elected municipal court judge be fully and fairly evaluated which is why I went through the Municipal League’s evaluation process. I do not, however, believe the KCBA either fully or fairly evaluates judicial candidates.
The concerns and criticisms of the KCBA evaluation process have been well publicized. Those that know me are well aware that I believe in taking public stands and do not believe anonymous sources are reliable sources. It is troubling that the KCBA has encouraged individuals to anonymously provide information about my candidacy. The Seattle Weekly has previously reported that I have been treated unfairly by the KCBA and while it may be politically expedient to cooperate with the KCBA I would prefer to do what I believe is right rather than what is politically expedient.
Michael Morgan
Editor’s Note:
One of the main goals of KCBA’s judicial screening process is to provide the public with information on judicial candidates. This also helps to create and maintain a high-caliber judiciary. The Judicial Screening Committee Rules and Procedures require the committee to rate all candidates in contested elections, and any other candidates for election who request a rating, for judicial positions on municipal, district and superior courts in King County, Division I of the Court of Appeals and the Washington State Supreme Court.
The Board of Trustees has charged the Judicial Screening Committee with making every reasonable effort to credibly rate candidates who decline to participate in the screening process. The committee rates a candidate if it determines by majority vote that it has sufficient information to do so.
In seeking information about a candidate who declines to participate in the judicial screening process, KCBA sends an email to all lawyers in King County for whom KCBA has an email address, requesting those with experience with the candidate to contact a co-chair of the Judicial Screening Committee. KCBA refers potential references to the Rules and Procedures (posted on the KCBA web site), which contain KCBA’s rating criteria.
The committee rates candidates; it does not endorse them. While reference information is kept confidential, the committee does not use anonymous sources.
The Judicial Screening Committee followed all of its usual procedures in screening Mr. Morgan on October 7 and he received a rating of Not Qualified.
