A survey recently conducted by IndyBar has resulted in the recommendation for continued service on the bench for each Marion Superior Court judicial candidate whose term of office expires in 2024.
Eighteen Marion Superior Court judges have terms ending this year. Ten of those judges are required by law to stand for a retention vote (approval or rejection by Marion County voters) in the 2024 General Election having served previous terms of office. The law requires the other eight to appear for retention before the Marion County Judicial Selection Committee, as they are recent appointees of Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb. All eighteen judges were included in IndyBar’s survey made available to nearly 4,000 lawyers practicing in Marion County including all IndyBar attorney members, all Marion County Bar Association members, and all attorneys on staff with the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office and Marion County Public Defender Agency. To participate in an individual judge’s survey, attorneys were required to confirm direct professional contact with the judge. Ultimately, nearly 1,000 of those receiving the survey participated.
“The number of attorneys participating isn’t surprising. A small percentage of attorneys directly interact with judges. Because Marion County judges are assigned to courts focusing only in a specific area of law such as criminal, family, or civil law; that interaction becomes even more limited,” said David Duncan, Indianapolis Bar Association President. He added, “Our county’s newest judges have also had the challenge of beginning their Superior Court judgeships during the pandemic which further limited their ability to establish a direct presence with the larger legal community.”
Specifically, the bar’s survey asked the question, “Do you recommend (judge’s name) for judicial office?” Participants were given the choices of “yes,” “no,” and “undecided.” Below is a graph indicating the percentage of those selecting, “Yes.
If you have questions regarding these results or the survey itself, please contact Julie Armstrong, Executive Director, or David Duncan, 2024 President.
David Duncan
IndyBar President
davidd@scannellproperties.com
Julie Armstrong
IndyBar Executive Director
jarmstrong@indybar.org
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