2003 Judicial Candidate Questionnaire

SECTION I

BASIC CANDIDATE INFORMATION

1. Name as it will appear on the ballot

First Name	Middle Initial or Nick Name	Last Name
Mary		Roberts

2. Office sought (include office, jurisdiction, position/district number):

Superior Court Judge, King County, Dept. 4

3. Are you the incumbent? Yes

4. How long have you resided in this district/city?

22 years

5. How long have you resided in King County?

22 years

6. Is the office sought partisan or nonpartisan? Nonpartisan

7. If partisan, please indicate party:

CAMPAIGN CONTACTS

Campaign Name:

Retain Judge Mary Roberts

Address:

P.O. Box 15145

City/State/Zip:

Seattle, WA 98115-9998

Campaign Phone:

(206) 671-1711

Campaign Fax:

Campaign E-mail:

Campaign Website:

POLITICAL BACKGROUND

1. Beginning with the most recent position, please list public offices which you have held. Include positions on appointive Boards or Commissions.

Public Office

Elective or Appointive?

Dates Held

Leadership Role (if any)

King County Superior Court

Appointed to Elective Office

06/02/03-present

None yet

2. If you ran for public office but were not elected, please list those races below:

Office Title

Year of Run

SECTION III

In this section, we are seeking responses that reflect the four ratings criteria: involvement, effectiveness, character, and knowledge. These are defined as follows:

Involvement: What has the candidate done previously in family, neighborhood, community, volunteer work, employment or public life to suggest readiness to accomplish challenging objectives? How do these activities demonstrate readiness for the challenges unique to the office sought?

Effectiveness: Has the candidate demonstrated promise of being productive in the office sought? Has the candidate shown the ability to work with other people?

Character: Do the candidate's personal traits show the ability to take on the responsibilities of campaigning for and holding the public office she or he is seeking? Is the candidate a leader, participant or observer? Is the candidate trustworthy, reliable and candid?

§ Knowledge: Has the candidate demonstrated the willingness and ability to learn and adapt? Does the candidate understand the duties and challenges of the office sought? Does the candidate have a firm grasp of the issues important to his or her constituency and their potential effects?

1. In a page or less, why are you running for this office? (Note: the interview committee will be given a copy of this statement before your interview; at the beginning of your interview you will have the opportunity to expand on this statement in any way you wish.)

I believe in the sanctity of the law and its profound power to help find remedies and solutions fairly for all persons. I want to continue to contribute my skills as a neutral judicial decision maker to further the needs of society for the peaceful resolution of conflicts.

I had a very well-rounded legal career before my appointment to the bench. I have served as a neutral arbitrator. I have practiced criminal law and civil law. I have represented plaintiffs and defendants. I have worked in the public sector and in the private sector. This varied background has prepared me well to tackle any legal issue and to apply my intellect and experience in a fair manner. I have experienced the "bias" that one naturally forms when acting as a passionate advocate. I have experinced it from different perspectives when representing plaintiffs and when representing defendants. This gives me a healthy appreciation for the fact that there is always more than one side to every controversy.

Prior to becoming a judge, I spent my entire legal career in the fast-paced world of litigation. I am accustomed to hard work and quick decision-making. I believe I am particularly good at analyzing a problem and confidently selecting a path to resolution. I am not wishy-washy or tentative, but am decisive. Ironically, decisiveness is a quality lacking in many judges. I am capable of juggling many tasks at once.

My former law practice, including my early time as a law/clerk bailiff, and my later role directly advising the King County Superior Court, has provided me with extensive knowledge of the administration of the Court. I envision myself as assisting the Court in these issues in addition to my duties presiding over cases.

I have been trained extremely well in the law; my mentors taught me the importance of preparation, and how to organize and litigate cases at a very high standard. I was a smart, hard-working, organized, and thorough attorney. Now I bring those same qualities to the bench.

Finally, I am compassionate. I have been extremely devoted to the law for much of my life. As stated above, I truly believe in its sanctity. I hope to continue to be able to bring all of these qualities to the Superior Court.

2. Describe your most important personal characteristics or traits as they relate to the office you seek.

I am strong, hard-working, decisive, intellectually honest and compassionate. My strength has been demonstrated by the graceful manner in which I have juggled my many professional and personal roles. I have maintained an intense litigation practice while keeping a happy family life and staying involved with my community. This takes hard work and the ability to make decisions quickly. I am often surprised that judges are not necessarily decisive. This is a particularly strong character trait of mine that has already proved to be essential to the smooth running of my court. I have demonstrated my compassion in my professional career in my work on behalf of employees who have suffered discrimination at the hands of their employers. To some, I may seem to have demonstrated a leaning on behalf of victims of civil rights violations. I have devoted most of my life to championing civil rights. But, I am also intellectually honest. I have declined the opportunity to write amicus briefs for civil rights organizations where I thought the organization's position was not legally supportable. At heart, I truly believe in the law.

3. Please describe in sufficient detail, one to three accomplishments or contributions of which you are most proud. These examples should illustrate effective skills and capabilities you think apply to the office you are seeking. These accomplishments may have occurred at any time in your personal, professional, or public life.

1. In 2001, I chaired the Pacific Coast Labor & Employment Law Conference, a national conference with a budget of over $100,000. This position represented the culmination of ten years' work on the Conference Planning Committee. The Conference was very successful, bringing in more money than we had made in several years. The proceeds from the conference fund significant scholarships for students at the University of Washignton and Seattle University law schools who show interest and aptitude in labor and employment law. My work on this conference demonstrated my leadership and organizational abilities, as well as my ability to take on a major project while attending to the other demanding aspects of my life.

2. My former law partner and I represented a class of workers at a fish processing plant who were not paid overtime. The workers who were underpaid were mostly recent immigrants who did not speak English, and who desperately needed their jobs. Those who questioned the unlawful pay practices were fired. The state and federal departments of labor had repeatedly investgated the company, found violations, and ordered payment of back wages. When the company failed to comply with the order, nothing was done. Our clients were courageous people who stood up for all the employees at the plant, and pursued the litigation toward a fair resolution that lead to profound changes at the plant. This case is significant to me because we were able to support good strong people who were assumed to be ignorant simply because of their race or national origin. My work on the case demonstrated my perserverance and compassion.

3. During law school, I co-managed a 39-unit apartment building. As part of that job, I had to deal with tenants when they were angry, distraught, hysterical, drunk, and argumentative. I cleaned the common areas of the building, as well as the apartments when tenants moved out. I learned basic plumbing as it related to an early 20^th century building, how to patch walls and ceilings, and how to re-seat a toilet. I had a very practical education at the "La Charme." I learned a great deal about human nature, my ability to stay calm in a storm, and the fact that I can do anything if I have a good instruction book.

4. Please list or describe your current and past activities in the community in which you have acquired skills that relate to the office you seek. Include your role in the activity and the year(s) in which you were involved. Involvement consists of many areas such as family, neighborhood, community, employment, or public life.

NATIONAL EMPLOYMENT LAWYERS ASSOCIATION

2001 NELA Annual Convention Co-Chair

2000 NELA Annual Convention Committee Member

Nominations Committee (2002)

Affiliate Relations Committee Member (2000-2003)

WASHINGTON EMPLOYMENT LAWYERS ASSOCIATION

Chair (199-2000)

Vice Chair (1998-1999)

Board Member (1994-2003)

Amicus Committee Chair (1994-1998)

Amicus Committee Member (1994-2003)

WELA ALERT Editor (sole editor 1999, co-editor 2001-2003)

WASHINGTON STATE TRIAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION

Chair, Employment Law Section (1998-2000)

Member, Legislative Committee (1998-2000)

KING COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION

Nominations Committee (2003)

Judicial Evaluationi Committee II (1997-1999)

Awards Committee (1994-1996)

KING COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION, LABOR & EMPLOYMENT LAW SECTION

Chair (2001-2002)

Chair-Elect (2000-2001)

Treasurer (1999-2000)

Secretary (1998-1999)

Trustee (1997-1998)

PACIFIC COAST LABOR & EMPLOYMENT LAW CONFERENCE

Chair (2000-2001)

Planning Committee (1992-2002)

U.S. DISTRICT COURT CIVIL RIGHTS PRO-BONO SCREENING COMMITTEE

Member (1997-2001)

U.S. DISTRICT COURT RULE 39.1 REGISTER OF QUALIFIED MEDIATORS AND ARBITRATORS

Panel Member (2002-2003)

KING COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT MANDATORY ARBITRATION PROGRAM

Arbitrator (1990-2003)

WASHINGTON STATE BAR ASSOCIATION

Labor & Employment Law Section Member (2000-2003)

NORTHWEST WOMEN'S LAW CENTER

Sexual Harassment Education Committee (Chair 1989-1991; Member 1986-1989)

Volunteer Speaker to groups such as:

Central Area Motivational Project (CAMP)

Bainbridge Island HIgh School (teachers and staff)

YWCA ("displaced homemakers" re-entering the workforce)

Masters Mates & Pilots Union

Renton Vocational & Technical School (women trained in non-traditional jobs)

AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION OF WASHINGTON

Cooperating Attorney (1994-2003)

CONTINUING LEGAL EDUCATION SPEAKER

I have spoken at over 30 CLE seminars

UNIVERSITY CHILD DEVELOPMENT SCHOOL

Co-Chair of 2002 "Family Fling," a major school carnival

MENTOR, UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON SCHOOL OF LAW (1998-present)

Please describe the duties of the office you seek. Which are the most important duties and why?

The duties of a Superior Court Judge include presiding over civil and criminal trials, ruling upon motions brought outside of the trial day, and participating in the administration of the Court. All of these duties are important; they are so interrelated as to be impossible to prioritize. I pledge to undertake each with compassion and fairness.

EDUCATION BACKGROUND SUMMARY

FOR PUBLICATION IN CANDIDATE EVALUATION REPORT

The Municipal League’s Candidate Evaluation Report is distributed to voters in print and/or on our website. It includes a summary of the candidate’s education. Please summarize your education in 120 characters (letters, punctuation, and space all combined). The League will delete material that exceeds the space limit by beginning with the last entry. Suggested order is (degree) (subject) (school) (year, if desired).

Note: If this question is left blank the League will not include education information in your candidate profile.

J.D., University of Washington School of Law, 1984; B.S., Mathematics, University of Puget Sound, 1981.

CIVIC INVOLVEMENT SUMMARY

FOR PUBLICATION IN CANDIDATE EVALUATION REPORT

The Municipal League’s Candidate Evaluation Report also includes a summary of each candidate’s civic involvement. Please summarize your civic involvement in the space below. We will make every attempt to include the information in the Candidate Evaluation Report as submitted. Due to space restrictions in the Report, your response is limited to 500 characters (letters, punctuation, and spaces all combined). It is important that you list your involvement beginning with the most important and ending with the least important. If you exceed the length of response permitted, or if the League should find it necessary to shorten responses for publication purposes, deletions will be made beginning with the last item listed.

Note: This information will appear verbatim on the League’s Candidate Evaluation Report. If this question is left blank, the Municipal League will not include information on your civic involvement in the Report.

Check here if you would like the Municipal League to copy the first 500 characters from Question 4 to paste into this section.

Past member of US District Court Civil Rights Pro-Bono Screening Panel. Past chair of Pacific Coast Labor & Employment Law Conference, Washington State Employment Lawyers Association, King County Bar Association Labor & Employment Law Section, WSTLA Employment Law Section, Northwest Women's Law Center Sexual Harassment Education Committee. Mentor to UW Law Students.

Supplemental Judicial Candidate Questionnaire

1. Briefly describe the nature of your current practice/position including types of clients and areas, if any, of specialization. State what percentage involves civil litigation, criminal litigation, and/or nonlitigation.

Prior to my appointment in June to the Superior Court, I was a partner at Frank Freed Roberts Subit & Thomas LLP, a six-attorney firm emphasizing litigation in the areas of union side labor and plaintiffs employment law. My work at the firm was concentrated in litigation on behalf of individual workers. This included trial and appellate practice before state and federal courts, labor arbitrators, and administrative tribunals. I have litigated cases involving wage and hour law, sexual harassment, retaliation, and discrimination on the bases of race, age, sex, national origin, disability, marital status, religion, and sexual orientation. I also advised individuals on employment issues, including contract and severance negotiation.

2. Identify all your experience as a neutral decision maker (e.g. judge, permanent or pro tem, in any jurisdiction, administrative law judge, hearing officer, arbitrator, etc.)

I have been a Superior Court Judge in King County since June 2, 2003. Prior to that, for 12 years, I was regularly appointed as an arbitrator through the King County Superior Court Mandatory Arbitration Program.

3. If you have been a judge, identify any court committees on which you have served or administrative positions you have held, including dates.

I have only been on the bench for two months; the committee assignments are made at the end of the year.

4. List the approximate percentage of your time over the last five years you have made appearances in:

0	% municipal court

0	% state district court

40	% superior court

40	% federal district court

5	% appellate court

5	% administrative tribunals

5. Are you now an officer or director of any business enterprise other than your law practice? If so, what role do you expect to play if elected?

6. Have you ever been disciplined or determined to be in breach of professional conduct by any court, administrative agency, bar association, disciplinary committee, judicial conduct commission, or other professional group? Have you ever had a formal complaint filed against you with the WSBA? If so for either or both questions, give the particulars, including the outcome.