Commission to Consider Three Appointments to Court of Appeal
Contact: Cathal Conneely, 415-865-7738
November 29, 2012
Commission on Judicial Appointments to Consider Three Appointments to Courts of Appeal
Confirmation Hearings Set December 20th for First, Fifth, and Sixth Appellate Districts
SAN FRANCISCO—Three public meetings have been scheduled by the Commission on Judicial Appointments for Thursday, December 20, 2012, at 9:45 a.m., 11:00 a.m., and 12:30 p.m. in the Supreme Court Courtroom, Earl Warren Building, 350 McAllister Street, located in the Ronald M. George State Office Complex, San Francisco, to consider the following appointments by Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr.:
• Judge Adrienne M. Grover, as Associate Justice of the Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate District (San Jose).
• Mr. James M. Humes, as Associate Justice of the Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, Division Four (San Francisco), and
• Judge Rosendo Peña, Jr., as Associate Justice of the Court of Appeal, Fifth Appellate District (Fresno).
Judge Grover, Superior Court of Monterey County, will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Associate Justice Wendy Clark Duffy from the Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate District. Judge Grover has served on the Superior Court of Monterey County since 2002. Before that, she served as county counsel for Monterey County from 1999 to 2002 and as deputy county counsel from 1995 to 1999. Judge Grover also served as assistant county counsel and then deputy county counsel in Calaveras County from 1992 to 1995 and was an associate attorney at Long and Levit LLP from 1990 to 1992.
Mr. Humes will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Patricia K. Sepulveda from the Court of Appeal, First Appellate District. Mr. Humes has served as executive secretary for legal affairs, administration, and policy at the Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. since 2011. Before that, he was chief deputy attorney general from 2007 to 2011, and served at the California Department of Justice from 1993 to 2007, in various roles, including chief assistant of the civil division and senior assistant attorney general of the health, education and welfare section. He also served in the Colorado Attorney General’s Office from 1984 to 1986 and again from 1987 to 1993, and was an associate at Banta Hoyt Banta Greene Hannen and Everall PC from 1986 to 1987 and at Jay Stuart Radetsky PC from 1983 to 1984.
Judge Peña, Superior Court of Fresno County, will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Associate Justice Betty L. Dawson from the Court of Appeal, Fifth Appellate District. Judge Peña has served on the Superior Court of Orange County since 2002. Before that, he served as a senior research attorney for the Fifth District Court of Appeal from 1994 to 2002 and from 1983 to 1990. Judge Peña was an associate at the Law Offices of Hernandez and Ramirez from 1992 to 1994 and a deputy attorney general at the Criminal Division of the California Department of Justice from 1990 to 1992. He also served as a deputy state public defender at the State Public Defender’s Office from 1981 to 1983.
The state Constitution specifies that a gubernatorial appointment to the Supreme Court or the Court of Appeal is “effective when confirmed by the Commission on Judicial Appointments.”
The hearing for Judge Grover is scheduled from 9:45 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. The hearing for Mr. Humes is scheduled from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The hearing for Judge Peña is scheduled from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
The members of the commission who will consider the appointment of Judge Grover are Chief Justice Cantil-Sakauye, chair; Attorney General Harris; and Administrative Presiding Justice Conrad L. Rushing, of the Sixth Appellate District. The members of the commission who will consider the appointment of Mr. Humes are Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye, chair; Attorney General Kamala D. Harris; and senior Presiding Justice of the First Appellate District, J. Anthony Kline. The members of the commission who will consider the appointment of Judge Peña are Chief Justice Cantil-Sakauye; Attorney General Harris; and Administrative Presiding Justice Brad R. Hill, of the Fifth Appellate District.
All communications to the commission by persons who wish to comment on the appointment should be received by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 13, 2012.
The commission’s address is:
Commission on Judicial Appointments
c/o Chief Justice of California
Supreme Court of California
350 McAllister Street
San Francisco, California 94102
Attention: Secretary to the Commission
Anyone wishing to testify before the commission must state that request in writing and include a summary of the facts on which any testimony or opinion will be based. A request to be included on the speakers’ list must be received by the commission by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 13, 2012.
The guidelines for the Commission on Judicial Appointments are published as an appendix to the California Rules of Court and are available on the California Courts website.
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