Why are you seeking this bench and what 3 primary goals do you have in mind if you are elected?
My father was a DPS officer for 27 years. My grandfather and two uncles were/are firemen. So, I grew up in a family of public servants. And that is how I see this role, the Judge of the 457th District Court. It is an opportunity to serve the citizens of Montgomery County, Texas.
With that in mind, my goals for this bench would be directed at providing the best service possible to the taxpaying citizens of Montgomery County.
- This starts with something simple. Be open for business on time and be available to hear cases throughout a full workday. In more than a decade as a civil litigator, I have been in countless courts that were set to hear cases beginning at 8:00, 8:30, or 9:00am, only to have a judge take the bench an hour late or more. It may sound overly simple, but if you work in the courthouse, you know it happens all too often. This results in attorneys and clients wasting hours at the courthouse with very little to show for it.
- A judge must stay up to date on the case law and any changes the legislature makes to the code. This is essential to effectively handling a large docket of cases in a timely manner. If the court is not on top of the law, poor decisions negatively affect the parties to the case. In addition, some of those rulings may be reversed upon appeal and require additional litigation in the trial court. Ultimately, this clogs up the courts and becomes an inefficient use of taxpayer resources.
- Finally, in addition to a Judge being a public servant, they are also leaders in their communities. My final goal as judge would be to conduct myself, on and off the bench, in a manner that is a quality example of what a conservative is about: 1) Treat people with the same respect that you expect of them, 2) be a good husband, 3) be a good father, and 4) support community organizations that represent our core values.
To what extent do you believe the state or federal government should be able to obtain court orders directing parents to do things for their children that the parent does not believe should be done?
I believe this question is not intended to address child welfare law (Child Protective Services cases in Family Courts).
With a civil court in mind, the federal government’s ability to obtain orders directing parents on their parenting style or decisions should be EXTREMELY limited. In fact, I can’t seem to think of a factual situation where this might be warranted in a civil case.
What carries the greatest influence on your rulings: case law, the Constitutions, or other?
Every Judge should have four things that influence their rulings:
- The Constitution – It all starts with the Constitution. The Constitution permeates throughout litigation in a civil court: 1) notice and due process, 2) the rules of civil procedure, 3) the rules of evidence, 4) burdens of proof, and more. A solid foundation in the Constitution is a necessity to make quality rulings throughout a case.
- The Legislative Code – No matter what type of case is before a court, a solid understanding of the law related to that each specific case is necessary. A judge must understand what the code requires before making rulings in cases. The Legislative code is the starting point for this in each case.
- The Facts – Each case has its own unique facts. Often cases have similar facts, but none are exactly alike. A judge must take the time, when called upon, to carefully listen to the facts in an evidentiary hearing or trial, and apply them to the law, before making a ruling.
- Case Law – Case law gives guidance to a Judge on each of the previous factors when making a ruling. Case law also gives guidance on any constitutional principles that apply to a case. And, case law provides guidance on which facts are most instructive on the area of the Code that covers a case.
Ultimately, a judge should have a solid foundation in the Constitution, take the time to read the legislative code that is applicable to a specific case, listen to the facts, and have an understanding of how the appellate courts have previously ruled in similar cases.
Are the United States and Texas constitutions living documents? Please answer in the context of Progressivism versus Originalism.
This is a subject that could easily develop into a 200+ page thesis if one is not careful.
In short, I have always considered myself a constructionist when viewing the constitution. This falls easily within the Originalism perspective. I have always been much more comfortable with a stricter adherence to the actual language of the constitution.
There are two reasons for this position:
- The stricter the interpretation of a law, the clearer and easier it is for citizens to understand follow the law.
- If, as progressives believe, that a document is living, and its meaning can be changed on a whim, then the document losses a great deal of its meaning and purpose.
Please list the key differences between you & your opponent(s) in this race & why your experience/position is better.
I believe the key to this race is that that Montgomery County Board of Judges has determined that this court will handle civil cases much like the 284th District Court. I have been handling civil litigation matters for my entire career.
I started my career, like most attorneys, doing the grunt work on cases. I was constantly doing the investigations, handling the discovery matters, drafting motions, researching the case law, and prepping the cases for trial and/or disposition for a more senior attorney. I learned the ins and outs of litigating civil lawsuits, the rules of evidence, the rules of procedure, predicates, motion practice, and how courts handle their dockets. For the first 5 years after law school, learning civil litigation was my career.
After some time, I desired to move into the courtroom. For the last seven years, I have run my own general practice law firm. I have handled primarily civil and family cases in that time. This has resulted in extensive courtroom experience. I am in the courtroom at least three, often four, and sometimes five days a week.
My experience has given me the opportunity to experience dozens of courts. I have seen what the good courts do well. I have seen what the bad courts do poorly. Most importantly, I have the experience to apply that as a Judge. For the voters of Montgomery County, that means I can provide a court that is open for business, hears cases timely, makes timely rulings, listens to the evidence, and makes rulings that fall within the parameters of the law. We don’t want judges legislating from the bench, and I don’t plan to. I believe all of this will add up to a court that does its job effectively while being as efficient as possible with taxpayer resources.
Please describe the best way for the average voter to determine which judicial candidate is best.
These days, it is difficult for any voter to make an informed decision about any candidate in any race. There constantly seems to be bias in our media and information sources. In those races, voters must do their own homework. They need to be able to read or hear the candidate’s responses to questions that are important to the voter. They need to be able have a face to face contact if possible. They need to understand the candidate’s plans.
In this race, voters are deciding on who should be the Judge of a new civil district court. They first need to be informed of what that means and what that job entails. They need answers to questions. What types of cases will this court handle? What experience do the candidates actually possess? Does the experience of one candidate fit the needs of the position more than the others?
Answers to these direct questions are the best way for the average voter to determine the best candidate.
What role should government have in reforming criminals?
The government should constantly be driven to do what is best for the average taxpaying citizen. Mostly, that means being efficient with the resources taxpayers give them and staying out of the citizen’s liberties. Keeping with this focus while handling criminal offenders, the government should limit rehabilitation of criminals to situations where there is evidence that the return to the taxpayers is clearly greater than lack of reform. More specifically, if it costs less to rehabilitate an offender than it does to house one in a prison, then rehabilitation is a better use of taxpayer resources.
Please describe what you believe are the most significant issues in this race, why and what you'll do to address them?
I believe the most significant issue in this race is the candidates’ experience in a civil courtroom. Ultimately, a judge is a public servant that is here to help citizens resolve disputes in a civil, non-violent, manner. It is anticipated that this court will handle the growing number of civil lawsuits in Montgomery County. If a candidate does not have enough experience in a courtroom, it will be difficult for them properly handle the needs of the position. This will result in a backlog of cases and taxpayer resources being wasted.
While I believe that my experience in the courthouse naturally addresses this issue, I would further set up a court and court staff that is designed to be open to the public, is easy to access for attorneys and parties, and has clearly defined scheduling rules that are designed to make each case run efficiently and on a timeline.
Please describe the qualifications and experience that make you the best candidate for the office you are seeking.
The 457th will be a Civil District Court. I have more than a decade of civil litigation experience. I have handled hundreds of lawsuits that have resulted in more than 150 bench trials and 3 jury trials. I have also handled appellate work in the 1st, 5th, 9th, and 10th courts of appeals as well as the Supreme Court of Texas.
This caseload has resulted in me being in the courthouse three, four, and as much as five days a week. This type of work, combined with my appellate work, has given me the ability to see how well run courts are operated and how poorly run courts are operated.
This background makes me ready to do the job, to move a large caseload as a judge, to make timely rulings that are not likely to be overturned on appeal, to be as efficient as possible with tax-payer resources, and to provide the level of public service our community deserves.
Please describe the changes you will make to improve the efficiency of your court, yet remain thoughful about rulings/orders - that allows all parties to be heard and their arguments considered. Please specifically address how many days a year your court will be “in session.”
Since this is a new court, simple and direct policies and procedures must be implemented so that litigants and their counsel are clear on what is expected in each case. These policies and procedures should include scheduling orders, the requirement of alternative dispute resolution, procedures if a jury trial is requested, requirements that parties conference before setting hearings with the court, and other rules that effectuate the timely conclusion to cases.
Of course, there should be no need to reinvent the wheel. The implementation of these policies should be carefully considered against the policies of similar courts within the same county. If the policies and procedures are uniform between the civil courts, the attorneys and their clients (the taxpayers) will have an easier time moving their case to resolution.
In addition to consistent policies to move cases along, the court, and its staff, must also make time for the litigants to present their cases, have their day in court, and be given a thoughtful considered ruling. There are two factors that are necessary to accomplish this: 1) the court, and its staff, must be effective time managers and 2) the court must be open and available to the parties.
These two concepts do have some overlap as time management becomes much easier if the the Judge and the court staff are in the office and/or in the courtroom during regular business hours. There are many courts that get started several hours into the work day because the docket isn't held until the judge gets there at 10 in the morning, or later. Not coincidentally, it is sometimes difficult to get cases set timely in those courts as their dockets are often too full to accommodate any additional hearings. This, of course, results in longer times for cases to be resolved. Simply put, if the court doesn't really get started working until 9:30 or 10, then it is difficult to give each case the time it deserves.
I would anticipate this court being "in session" during regular business hours on all regular workdays. This, of course, would exclude the standard Montgomery County Holiday schedule. I would anticipate this court would have regular dockets handling various case types four days a week. The one additional day per week would be set aside to preferentially set cases or hearings that are anticipated to be complicated or time consuming. Reserving one day per week for time-consuming hearings or issues prevents these cases from delaying the resolution on other matters.
Among the nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court(SCOTUS), which one do you respect the most, and why? Which one do you respect the least, and why? What judicial philosophy should a SCOTUS Justice have?
Recently, there have been changes to the justices of the Supreme Court. It is typically an organization that changes quite slowly, but the last ten years have seen a large amount of turnover for the institution. Therefore, there are justices that are continuing to develop their voice. However, the voice that Samuel Alito has developed is one that I appreciate. He is a conservative justice but clearly takes a case by case approach to his rulings.
In contrast to Alito, Sotamayor seems to have taken the opposite approach. It appears that she believes the constitution is a tool that can be bent to serve her purpose. As a result, she takes a liberal view of the constitution and uses it affect change in accordance with her personal agenda.
Do you think judges should be elected by the people, or appointed by a commission?
I believe in the rights of the voters to decide their public servants and leaders.
What amount of indigent defense is appropriate for the State/Montgomery County? And why?
First, in a civil court, I do not anticipate the need for many, if any, court appointed attorneys that are paid for by the taxpayer.
Generally, I believe that courts should limit the appointement of attorneys to cases in which the appointments are manditory under the law. Typically, manditory appointments under the law are made in cases where a defendant is subject to losing rights that are constitutional in nature. Of course, the most common type of indigent defense appointment is criminal in nature where someone is subject to losing their freedom. In those types of cases, I believe it is appropriate to appoint an attorney for someone who cannot afford one. However, the defendant should also be made, as part of his sentence, to repay the cost of the attorney to the taxpayer.
CSPOA says "Civil forfeiture laws pose one of the greatest threats to property rights in the nation today. They encourage law enforcement to favor the pursuit of property over the pursuit of justice, and they typically give the innocent little recourse for recovering seized property. And without meaningful transparency, law enforcement faces little public accountability for its forfeiture activity or expenditures from forfeiture funds." How should these Civil Forfieture issues be addressed?
I grew up in a home where my dad was a DPS officer. He retired after 27 years of service. As a result, I am very supportive of law enforcement. However, they, like judges, are ultimately public servants and government officials. So, of course, their power should not go unchecked. It clearly should be checked by the constitution and the personal property rights of the citizens.
Related to asset forfeiture, there seems to be very little due process being adhered to when the government seizes these assets. In some cases, it does not appear that a conviction is even required before law enforcement is able to take a citizen's property.
Without getting into a 50 page research paper on this issue, it will be interesting to see where this law goes once it gets to the higher courts. But, my opinion is that the use of asset forfeiture should be limited by due process and personal property rights outlined in the Constitution.
Understanding that all courts in MoCo have general jurisdiction, the board of judges has moved towards specialized courts. What types of cases are currently filed in the court you are running for? What is your experiences to handle this specific case type? Are you planning on asking to change the case allocation or case type assigned to the court you are running for if you win?
This is a newly created court that is expected to handle civil disputes. In speaking with judges and people within the county attorney's office, it appears that this court's caseload will be similar to the caseload of the 284th district court. As I have outlined it my previous responses, I am an experienced civil litigator and I am ready to do this job.
Assuming the Board of Judges sticks with this plan, I would not be planning to change the case allocation of this court.
In your view, what is the threshold for determining constitutionality of a legislative act? or a challenge to it?
Perhaps I am not fully understanding this question. But, the Constitution is the threshold for determining if a legislative act is constitutional.
Please list civic, political or union organization or individuals to whom you have contributed (five years):
Texas Casa -- Board Member/Donor 7 years
Texas Children's Hospital Ambassador/Donor
Habitat for Humanity -- Donor
World Wild Life fund -- Donor
Liberty Bells Associate Member
Texas Exes
Montgomery County Texas Exes
State Bar of Texas
David Farr Judicial Campaign
Mecca Walker Judicial Campaign
Roy Moore Judicial Campaign
Charlie Prine Judicial Campaign
Alicia York Judicial Campaign
Please list all conservative groups for which you are or have been a member, and list any positions held in each group.
Liberty Bells -- Associate Member
Please list who is endorsing you and what their relationship to you is?
At this time, I have just recently entered the race. I hope to be able to update this list in the coming weeks.
Bert Steinman -- Attorney/Colleague
Stephanie Hall -- Attorney/Colleague
Michelle Cantoni -- Attorney/Colleague
Debbie Garcia -- Attorney/Colleague
You are asking for the Republican nomination, what have you done to give back to the GOP?
In the last 5 years I have personally and financially supported the campaigns of several GOP candidates. I have volunteered at polling stations. I have put out signs. I have donated financially.I have requested support from my family, friends, and colleagues for multiple judcial candidates. I have focused many of these efforts in some of the most contested races in our area of Texas.
