David J. Schenck

Qualifications: What characteristics and experience qualify you to serve as a judge?

I served for 8 years as an appellate justice, chaired the state's judicial conduct commission and have specialized in appellate work for 30 years. I served also as Deputy Att'y General

Ethics: Since judicial candidates solicit donations and raise money to be elected, how can voters be assured that campaign donations will not impact how judges interpret the law and review lower court decisions?

Please see my website and my 2005 U.S. Supreme Court brief in Dimick. This has been a core concern of mine for 2 decades and why I have called for reforms, including limits on contributions, immediate disclosure when made during a case and mandatory recusals depending on the amounts and timing.

Judicial Elections: How would the administration of justice be impacted if judges ran in nonpartisan races?

We would have judges selected with the assent of far fewer voters and perhaps (but by no means certainly) less allegiance to the parties. Municipal elections are non-partisan and yet people still figure out which mayoral candidate is aligned with which party. Local (county wide) judicial races might be different, but statewide races will always attract heavy attention/spending, etc..

Equity: What can be done to improve access to justice for all, including persons or groups who may be underserved?

I think the issue here is more about quality of access than quantity; people, esp. the wealthy and very poor) can get to court on their own or via programs to provide counsel but everyone (not just the underserved) need meaningful access. It's the middle class that is really under served here. In civil cases, we have rules to expedite cases but few judges are aware of or adhere to them.

Philosophy: What is your judicial philosophy?

Simple: follow the law, don't make it up and treat everyone fairly.