CHBA Endorsements

This year has seen an incredible number of judicial vacancies, and the Nominations and Endorsements Committee has reviewed numerous endorsement requests for county court, district court and court of appeals judgeships.  The Committee has also participated in various initiatives throughout 2008.  Here is a summary of its endorsement process and some highlights of this year’s activities.   

Committee Members:

• Dolores Atencio
• Daniel R. Casias
• Todd Fredrickson
• Steven M Gutierrez, Vice-Chair
• Diego G. Hunt, Chair
• Victoria E. Lovato, Board Member
• Awilda Marquez, CHBA Past President
• Anna N. Martinez
• Anthony J. Navarro, CHBA Vice President
• Joe A. Ramirez, CHBA President
• Meshach Y. Rhoades, CHBA President Elect

Colorado’s Judicial Selection Process:

Nominating commissions consider applicants for county, district, Court of Appeals, and Supreme Court vacancies, and make their recommendations to the Governor for appointment.  Judicial nominating commissions from each of the 22 judicial districts consider applicants for county and district vacancies in their respective judicial districts.  The Supreme Court Nominating Commission considers applicants for the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals.   

The judicial selection process begins when the Colorado Judicial Branch announces court vacancies.  The announcements are posted to the Colorado Judicial Branch webpage and can be found at www.courts.state.co.us/exec/media/vacancy.htm.  The webpage also lists the application deadlines, provides links to finalists sent to the Governor for consideration, and lists the nominees appointed. 

The linked announcements provide more detailed information regarding the application process and timelines.  The times between announcements and application deadlines vary greatly, with some allowing less than two weeks.  The announcements also list the dates the nominating commission will meet to interview and select nominees.  The nominating commissions generally select nominees immediately after interviewing the candidates.

Once a commission announces the finalists, the Governor has 15 days to conduct interviews and select one of the nominees.  Notably, the interviews usually take place in within 10 days to allow the Governor to solicit and consider comments, conduct interviews, and conduct any further investigation prior to appointment.  Finally, the Governor appoints a judge to an initial, provisional 2-year term. 

For more information regarding the judicial selection process visit the State Judicial Branch webpage at www.courts.state.co.us/exec/media/vacancy.htm. 

CHBA’s Endorsement Process:

CHBA’s principal goal in endorsing candidates for judgeships is to promote the selection of qualified judges to Colorado’s local, state and federal courts, particularly candidates who have demonstrated a commitment to equality of all litigants and who have been involved in, supportive of, and responsive to Hispanics’ issues, needs and concerns. 

CHBA considers the following factors:

• The extent to which a candidate has been involved in, supportive of, and responsive to Hispanics’ needs and concerns
• Membership in the CHBA and/or local Hispanic bars or organizations
• Integrity and character
• Litigation, adjudicative, administrative and professional experience
• Scholarship and communication skills (oral and written)
• Judicial temperament
• Common sense
• Demonstrated commitment to the concept of equal opportunity and equal justice under law

When considering requests for endorsement, the Committee engages in extensive due diligence.  Our due diligence process before endorsing a candidate for the bench involves reviewing the candidate’s judicial application; contacting and interviewing the references identified in the candidate’s judicial application; identifying, contacting and interviewing CHBA members who know the work of the judicial candidate; and, if time permits, conducting a personal interview of the candidate.  We also ask candidates requesting endorsement to provide the Committee with a statement as to how their candidacy meets CHBA’s endorsement goals and criteria. 

Once a sub-team of the Committee completes its investigation, the team conducting the due diligence makes a recommendation to the Committee regarding endorsement.  The Committee then reviews the recommendation and votes whether to endorse the candidate.  If endorsed, CHBA submits its endorsement letter to the Governor’s Office for consideration. 

How to Seek Endorsement:

Given the extensive due diligence required for its endorsements, CHBA only considers endorsement requests from nominees sent for consideration to the Governor.  The Governor’s Office also asks that CHBA submit its endorsements prior to the Governor’s interviews with the nominees.  Given the short timeframe between the commissions’ selection of nominees and the Governor’s interviews, it is imperative that those seeking CHBA’s endorsement do so as soon as they learn of their nomination. 

To request CHBA’s endorsement, nominees should email or fax their judicial application and statement as to how their candidacy meets CHBA’s endorsement goals and criteria to my attention at dghunt@hollandhart.com or
303-975-5299.

CHBA Member Services: 

Apart of the endorsement process, the Committee also serves as a resource to CHBA’s members seeking appointment, including providing mock interviews based on past interview questions.  We have also established a dialogue with the Governor’s Office of Legal Counsel regarding areas of particular interest to the Governor and can help prepare candidates to discuss those. 

Specialty Bar Associations Coalition:

This year the Committee has partnered with the Colorado Specialty Bar Associations -- the Sam Cary Bar Association, the GLBT Bar, APABA, CIBA, and the Women's Bar Association -- to work towards their shared goal of increasing diversity on the bench.  We are preparing joint resolutions, engaging in dialogue with key decision-makers, and working to encourage our members to apply to fill judicial vacancies. 

The Coalition’s work began early this year through joint letters to the judicial nominating commissions.  The letters urged the commissions to consider diverse candidates, and contrasted the racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender makeup of the bench to that of the State’s population.  The differences were stark.  For example, while according to 2006 Census estimates Latinos comprised 20% of the State’s population, only 9% of the State’s judges identified themselves as Latino or Hispanic.  When looking at the specific judicial districts, the statistics are even more telling.  For example, while nearly 35% of Adams County’s population is Latino, only 1 of its 17 judges identified themselves as Latino or Hispanic.  Click here to view the Coalition letters.     

Subcommittees – We Need You!

The Committee would like to establish subcommittees throughout the 22 judicial districts to participate in the due diligence process for candidates seeking CHBA’s endorsements for vacancies in their respective districts.  The subcommittees would work in conjunction with the Committee only for those vacancies in their district, so the time commitment would be limited.  If you would like to serve on a subcommittee for your judicial district, please send me an email with your contact information, and someone from the Committee will contact you regarding the position.     

If you would like to learn more about the Committee’s work, work on a subcommittee, or have any questions regarding the Committee’s activities, please feel free to call me at 303-295-8087 or contact me via email to dghunt@hollandhart.com.