Legislature(2009 - 2010)CAPITOL 120
02/20/2009 01:30 PM Senate JUDICIARY
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation: Regina Chennault -- Violent Crimes Compensation Board | |
| Confirmation: David Eichler -- Board of Governors | |
| Confirmation: William F. Clarke -- Alaska Judicial Council | |
| Confirmation: Kathleen Tompkins-miller -- Alaska Judicial Council. | |
| Confirmation: Jan Ostrovsky -- Commission on Judicial Conduct. | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
JOINT MEETING
SENATE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE
HOUSE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE
February 20, 2009
1:39 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
SENATE JUDICIARY
Senator Hollis French, Chair
Senator Bill Wielechowski, Vice Chair
Senator Kim Elton
Senator Gene Therriault
HOUSE JUDICIARY
Representative John Coghill
Representative Bob Lynn
Representative Max Gruenberg
Representative Lindsey Holmes
MEMBERS ABSENT
SENATE JUDICIARY
Senator Lesil McGuire
HOUSE JUDICIARY
Representative Jay Ramras, Chair
Representative Nancy Dahlstrom, Vice Chair
Representative Carl Gatto
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATIONS
Violent Crimes Compensation Board
Regina C. Chennault
CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar
David L. Eichler
CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
Alaska Judicial Council
William F. Clarke
Kathleen R. Tompkins-Miller
CONFIRMATIONS ADVANCED
Commission on Judicial Conduct
Jan S. Ostrovsky
CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
Chris Brown (absent)
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to report.
WITNESS REGISTER
REGINA C. CHENNAULT, Appointee
Violent Crimes Compensation Board
Anchorage AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions from the committee.
DAVID EICHLER, Appointee
Board of Governors
North Pole AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions from the committee.
WILLIAM F. CLARKE, Appointee
Alaska Judicial Council
Chugiak AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions from the committee.
KATHLEEN TOMPKINS-MILLER, Appointee
Alaska Judicial Council
Fairbanks AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions from the committee.
JAN OSTROVSKY, Appointee
Commission on Judicial Conduct
Anchorage AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions from the committee.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:39:03 PM
CHAIR HOLLIS FRENCH called the joint meeting of the Senate and
House Judiciary Standing Committees to order at 1:39 p.m.
Senators Therriault, Wielechowski, Elton, and French and
Representatives Lynn, Gruenberg, Holmes, and Coghill were
present at the call to order.
CONFIRMATION HEARINGS
CHAIR FRENCH announced the business before the Senate and House
judiciary committees is to conduct a series of confirmation
hearings.
1:39:35 PM
^CONFIRMATION: Regina Chennault -- Violent Crimes Compensation
Board
REGINA C. CHENNAULT, Appointee, Violent Crimes Compensation
Board, Anchorage, said she is a general surgeon and has served
four or five years on the board already. She puts a lot of time
into it and really enjoys working on the board. The term is four
years and there are three members: one physician, one attorney,
and one public member.
CHAIR FRENCH said he has met her many times and is thrilled that
she is continuing on the board. It is extremely necessary work.
People who are victimized in Alaska need someone like Dr.
Chennault looking out for them.
1:41:05 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL said he has met with Dr. Chennault. The
board sees some of the toughest things. He believes she has a
good perspective.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG noted that her resume says her practice
is in Soldotna.
DR. CHENNAULT said she moved to Anchorage about two years ago.
REPRESENTATIVE LYNN said he has visited with her on some
interesting matters, and she is forthright and knowledgeable.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL moved to forward the name Regina
Chennault to the full body for confirmation. Hearing no
objection, it was so ordered.
^CONFIRMATION: David Eichler -- Board of Governors
1:43:02 PM
DAVID EICHLER, Appointee, Board of Governors, North Pole,
Alaska, said he has been a practicing dentist for 16 years. He
has been active in the community and is a member of the Board of
Dental Examiners. His term on that board will expire in a couple
of years, and he wants to do some other service.
CHAIR FRENCH noted that he would be a new appointee.
DR. EICHLER said the committee has his old application, although
he did submit an updated one.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG asked if there is anything
significantly different on the updated resume.
DR. EICHLER said no, except for his membership on the dental
board. He also does examinations throughout the country at
dental schools for initial licensure. His term on the dental
board will end in 2011, so he will be on two boards.
SENATOR THERRIAULT noted that Dr. Eichler reported that a member
of the family could be affected financially by this appointment.
DR. EICHLER said that answer related to his position on the
Dental Board because it is a professional board that is self-
governed. There is no potential for conflict on the bar board.
REPRESENTATIVE LYNN said Dr. Eichler has an interesting
background. He worked in animal science, he has a degree in
nursing, and he is a dentist. "That is quite a trip through the
health sciences." Now he will do legal work at the bar.
DR. EICHLER said that is just the surface of his experience.
SENATOR THERRIAULT noted that he is also a pilot. All citizens
of Representative Coghill's district are extraordinary.
1:47:04 PM
CHAIR FRENCH said the Alaska Bar Association sets annual dues
for all the lawyers in the state, and it has been his contention
that the dues for new entrants should be lower. Most states have
tiered bar dues so that young lowers pay less than lawyers who
have been earning a living for some time. He has brought this
up, and the bar has shot his idea full of holes, but it is still
of interest to Chair French.
REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES asked if he wants to accomplish anything
in particular.
DR. EICHLER said he enjoyed the process of regulation on the
dental board. He will be a public member on the Board of
Governors, so he won't be bringing any professional expertise.
He has no agenda.
1:49:07 PM
CHAIR FRENCH noted that people who are new to a board are
motivated by a desire to serve, but are not so familiar with the
board. He suggested that it may be beneficial to have the
executive director at these hearings to answer questions.
SENATOR THERRIAULT said unlike the dental board, the bar
association operates outside the normal budgeting process
whereby the commission has to come to the legislature to spend
money. The dues that it collects are supposed to pay for the
operation of the board and any sanctions on people. The bar
association operates off budget, and the legitimacy of that has
been questioned. Senator Therriault has heard individual
attorneys complain about the level of bar dues "when the
association rolls forward $1 million." The Board of Governors
hasn't seen fit to reduce the dues. The topic of "operating
outside the bounds of all other boards and commissions" may come
before Dr. Eichler.
1:51:18 PM
CHAIR FRENCH said Representative Stoltz and Chair French have
worked on that issue. The dues did come down about $100 this
year, but he doesn't know if it was from those efforts.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL moved to forward the name David Eichler
to the full body for confirmation. Hearing no objection, it was
so ordered.
^CONFIRMATION: William F. Clarke -- Alaska Judicial Council
1:52:26 PM
WILLIAM F. CLARKE, Appointee, Alaska Judicial Council, Chugiak,
Alaska, said he came to Alaska as a pilot in the air force and
retired in 1984. He then worked for an engineering firm for 16
years. He joined the Anchorage rotary club and enjoys serving
the public. He feels that his life experiences as a senior
citizen work well in the judicial council. He is the oldest
member. His son, a lawyer and a judge in Pennsylvania,
encouraged him to take this job. He believes seniors should be
more active in the public process.
1:54:08 PM
CHAIR FRENCH said today's hearings include confirmation for the
Alaska Judicial Council and the Alaska Commission on Judicial
Conduct. The roles of the two often get confused. He asked Mr.
Clarke to explain what the council does.
MR. CLARKE said it is an advisory body to the governor. It takes
members of the bar who have applied for judicial positions and
evaluates them. It then presents the most qualified list to the
governor. Self biases and judgments cannot be used. The intent
is to give the governor the broadest spectrum of candidates to
choose from.
CHAIR FRENCH surmised that Mr. Clarke will be part of the
judicial selection process and asked if he has done this before.
MR. CLARKE said he has been doing that since November, and the
last group that the council screened was for the Supreme Court
of Alaska. The judicial council is the finest group he has ever
worked with, and they made the job comfortable.
CHAIR FRENCH asked how many members are on the council, and Mr.
Clarke told him there are six. Chair French said he admired him
for having a bachelor's degree in English literature.
1:56:35 PM
SENATOR THERRIAULT asked how many applicants were reviewed for
that opening on the bench and how many were forwarded.
MR. CLARKE said there were six applicants and two were
forwarded.
SENATOR THERRIAULT said there is a debate on whether the council
should forward all of the names that meet a certain threshold in
proficiency and expertise or whether it is the council's job to
narrow the field down to only two or three names.
MR. CLARKE said the governor should be given the largest list
that the council can reasonably present. Anyone can apply, but
the council must screen for capable candidates. The list should
be as broad as possible.
SENATOR THERRIAULT said there are concerns that the process is
so bruising that candidates won't try again even though they
scored highly. That is a shame. He asked about ideas to make the
process gentler. Tough questions are OK, but the anonymous
comments may be an opportunity to savage folks and not make
meaningful comments. The person commenting may have crossed the
applicant in litigation in the past and it becomes an
opportunity to "just get 'em".
1:59:21 PM
MR. CLARKE said he agrees with him regarding anonymous comments.
Many members don't use the anonymous comments, but they are
available and known to the applicant. He personally discounts
them. If a person can't sign a comment, Mr. Clarke won't bring
it up in an interview. Council members go out of their way to
make the interviews user friendly. They are very courteous and
encouraging. No one has been pilloried. It is a cordial
atmosphere. The bar polls can be skewed, but it is easy to
identify and take into account. When members come up a second or
third time, they are told they are glad to see them again. It is
not out of line for the judicial council to encourage people to
apply again. He has been truly impressed by the professionalism
and cordiality of the other members.
2:01:46 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said there has been some talk on changing
the constitution regarding the way Alaska selects judges. He
asked if Mr. Clarke has a position on that.
MR. CLARKE said the current method is very good. "I wouldn't
change it because it allows the governor to be advised by a
group consisting of half professionals and half laymen." It then
allows the public to comment by vote on the quality of the
judges. It is more balanced than simply electing judges.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked how he evaluates potential judges.
2:03:26 PM
MR. CLARKE said the council is provided with a lot of material
including a data file. He tries to get a total picture of the
person, including education and continuing education in law.
Some people are really avid about it. One candidate had a page
and a half of courses taken. He looks at how serious the person
is educating him or herself. He looks at the pro bono experience
and the spectrum of experience as a prosecutor and a defender.
The council looks for a balance of civil and criminal
experience. These are the major points of discussion.
2:05:45 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if he has a litmus test or if he
considers political ideology.
MR. CLARKE said that is out of place for the council; that is
for the governor. The council's job is to find people who have
the professional background to do the job. The board is blind to
a person's persuasions. The list presented to the governor is a
professional list so the governor can conduct interviews knowing
that the people are qualified. The governor can add
discriminators as desired.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG asked if he has had contact with the
Alaska Judicial Observers, which is a group that provides
information on how judges conduct courtroom proceedings.
2:07:32 PM
MR. CLARKE said no.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG noted that Mr. Clarke was a director
with R&M Engineering Consultants, and he asked if he was a
shareholder. He asked if he thought the council should send all
nominees to the governor.
MR. CLARKE said he was not a shareholder, and he doesn't submit
nominees who aren't viable candidates. When positions come open,
anyone can apply, and it is the council's job to set a threshold
for the candidates, so the governor is guaranteed that
applicants have the adequate background for the job.
2:09:18 PM
REPRESENTATIVE LYNN noted that he served in Vietnam.
MR. CLARKE said his two oldest sons were in the Marine Corps,
and he flew combat missions in Vietnam. He was a forward air
patroller.
2:10:46 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said he was impressed with Mr. Clarke's
answer on who gets submitted to the governor; that it is based
on experience, qualification, and professionalism. That is how
judges should be selected. If the commission's goal is to submit
the best judges, it seems that by presenting less qualified
people to the governor opens it up to politics, and that should
be avoided.
MR. CLARKE said that is what he was saying. The council can
provide a list of qualified professionals without looking at
points of view. The governor can conduct interviews and ask what
she or he wants to know. The council is doing its job by not
applying political litmus tests, and the governor has the
ultimate responsibility for the appointment.
2:13:26 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL moved to forward the name William F.
Clarke to the full body for confirmation. Hearing no objection,
it was so ordered.
^CONFIRMATION: Kathleen Tompkins-Miller -- Alaska Judicial
Council.
2:14:12 PM
KATHLEEN TOMPKINS-MILLER, Appointee, Alaska Judicial Council,
Fairbanks, said she works part time for her husband's law firm
as a secretary/paralegal and she is a part-time student. She is
excited about the opportunity to serve on this council because
the judiciary is important to Alaskans. Selecting good judges is
critical to good government and good communities. She has read
about the council and had contact with members. "One thing that
actually excites me most is the research projects because I am a
firm believer in therapeutic courts."
CHAIR FRENCH noted that she will be new in this position, and he
asked if the council meets in Anchorage.
MS. TOMPKINS-MILLER said the council meets wherever the vacancy
is open.
2:16:38 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL asked if she had something to add about
the selection criteria for judges.
MS. TOMPKINS-MILLER said Mr. Clark answered similar to how she
would have answered. "We put forth the people that we feel ...
are the most qualified for the governor."
CHAIR FRENCH said she probably comes in contact with a fair
number of attorneys when working in her husband's law office.
MS. TOMPKINS-MILLER said she does, and she has known a lot of
them since they were students at Yale Law School. There will be
writing samples to read on the council, and "I've read a few of
those from students clear up to today for other attorneys."
CHAIR FRENCH surmised that she is familiar with the legal world.
He asked if Mr. Clark said anything that she disagreed with and
if she could discuss her role in the selection process.
MS. TOMPKINS-MILLER didn't disagree with Mr. Clarke except there
are seven members on the council. The exciting thing is that she
will bring a broad perspective. She has lived in Anchorage, Tok,
and Fairbanks. She has visited with different Native people, and
her husband was a magistrate, "so I have been able to see things
through many different eyes." She is a mom and is active in her
community. She regularly deals with people and their legal
problems, so she may have a better perspective than an attorney.
2:19:53 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG noted that her husband wrote an article
entitled "Op-ed from Lead Attorney in Alaska Troopergate
Lawsuit," and asked if those are her views.
MS. TOMPKINS-MILLER said she is somewhat familiar with the
article. It doesn't represent her views 100 percent. She is from
a very different family, and she is able to stand alone. She
believes her husband is very smart, but she makes her own
decisions.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG said he is asking because it relates to
the role of the legislature vis-à-vis other branches of
government. He asked if she views the role of the judiciary as
strict constructionist or otherwise.
MS. TOMPKINS-MILLER said she believes that whoever is most
qualified should go forward. She said she would have to look at
that article again. "There are so many things that Joe does,
that I might briefly look at, but I honestly have quite a life
outside of a lot of those things, so I don't remember everything
in that piece or what it was about."
2:21:49 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG said his real question is if a
candidate's political or judicial philosophy should influence
whether they are sent up to the governor or retained by the
public.
MS. TOMPKINS-MILLER said she believes that politics are
absolutely out of this. She will not bring any ideology to the
council. A judge needs to be able to apply the law fairly with
absolutely no biases.
REPRESENTATIVE LYNN said his wife doesn't share all his views.
CHAIR FRENCH said, "Ditto."
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL moved to forward the name Kathleen
Tompkins-Miller to the full body for confirmation. Hearing no
objection, it was so ordered.
^CONFIRMATION: Jan Ostrovsky -- Commission on Judicial Conduct.
2:24:00 PM
JAN OSTROVSKY, Appointee, Commission on Judicial Conduct,
Anchorage, said his resume doesn't include his public service or
his service with the bar. He was one of the founders of the
bankruptcy section of the Alaska bar. He has been a member of
the Committee on Bar Examiners, the Fee Arbitration Panel, and
the ABA Task Force on Attorney Discipline. He found them all
interesting and rewarding, and this commission should be too. It
is a fairly important position in that the Alaska judiciary is a
very good one, and a lot of that has to do with the method of
selection. The commission's role of seeing to it that the
judiciary stays respected, ethical, and impartial is important,
"and I would be proud to serve on this commission."
2:26:01 PM
CHAIR FRENCH asked him to draw the distinction between the
judicial council and the Commission on Judicial Conduct.
MR. OSTROVSKY said the commission hears complaints against
sitting judges - it isn't involved with the appointment of
judges. It determines or sets up for a decision by the supreme
court issues of complaints against judges. It issues advisory
and ethical opinions concerning judicial conduct.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if Mr. Ostrovsky has served yet or appeared
before the commission.
MR. OSTROVSKY said he hasn't had anything to do with it.
CHAIR FRENCH said his resume is long and distinguished, and the
commission would be lucky to have him as a member.
MR. OSTROVSKY said, in response to Senator Therriault, that
Larry Ostrovsky is his brother.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG asked Mr. Ostrovsky about his Avvo
rating. "Is that Martindale Hubbell AV?"
MR. OSTROVSKY said, "Yes, it is."
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG said that is the best rating a lawyer
can have.
MR. OSTROVSKY said there are two different ratings [in his
resume]. The Martindale Hubbell rating is AV. There is another
rating service called Avvo, and his rating is superb in
Washington. Avvo doesn't rate Alaska attorneys.
2:28:59 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL moved to forward the name Jan Ostrovsky
to the full body for confirmation. Hearing no objection, it was
so ordered.
CHAIR FRENCH said Mr. Brown [Chris Brown, Appointee to the
Commission on Judicial Conduct] is sick and will not be calling
in to the hearing today. He doesn't want to hold the other
nominees up. So the committee will sign the letter and Chair
French will create a new coversheet for the interviewed
candidates. Only the interviewed candidates will be forwarded.
2:30:45 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair French adjourned the meeting at 2:30 p.m.
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