NAWJ Monthly Update April 2020

Greetings NAWJ Members,

I hope you and your families are well. The stories I am hearing about the variety of ways you are keeping access to justice available are remarkable. Judge D’Souza has assigned a special taskforce to address COVID-19. The members of the taskforce are working collaboratively with the re-constituted Technology Committee and the Judicial Education Committee. We appreciate your responses to the COVID-19 Survey. You will soon be receiving further details about the Taskforce, updates and announcements as webinars, and other media are being developed for NAWJ members and greater judicial community. We have just launched a COVID-19 Resource Page  on the homepage of the NAWJ website. Check it often, as we will continue to update the page with relevant links.

The transition from the physical to remote office is working well. Lavinia, Maureen, Janelle, and I are in constant communication. NAWJ now has a helpful Zoom account for meetings. Day to day operations continue to support NAWJ members, ongoing programs, and future opportunities.

Stay well and safe.

Laurie Denham, CAE
Interim Executive Director

On March 2, 2020, in the Ceremonial Courtroom at the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, NAWJ DC members presented one of NAWJ’s most valuable and popular outreach programs, “Becoming A Judge.”

NAWJ member and Pierce County Superior Court Judge G. Helen Whitener was appointed Monday, April 13, 2020 by Governor Jay Inslee to the Washington Supreme Court. “Judge Whitener inspires lawyers and non-lawyers alike with her relentless work to raise awareness for matters of race, justice and equity,” Inslee said in a written statement. “She is tireless in her commitment to building a justice system that works for all, and as a Supreme Court justice, she will have an even greater platform to promote justice for everyone in Washington state. Judge Whitener has served on the Superior Court since being appointed by Governor Inslee in 2015, and previously served as a judge on the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals. Before becoming a judge, she worked as both a prosecutor and defense attorney. Judge Whitener, 55, was born in Trinidad and moved to the U.S. to attend college, earning her bachelor’s degree from Baruch College in New York and her law degree from Seattle University School of Law.

Dane County Circuit Court Judge Jill J. Karofsky won the general election on April 7, 2020 for justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, defeating incumbent Justice Daniel Kelly. Judge Karofsky has served as a judge for Branch 12 of the Dane County Circuit Court since 2017 and has spent her entire career as a dedicated advocate for victims and the rights of all residents of Wisconsin. She has extensive experience in the criminal justice system, having worked in positions such as Executive Director of the Wisconsin Office of Crime Victim Services; Assistant Attorney General, serving as the state’s Violence Against Women resource prosecutor; and deputy district attorney in Dane County. She has also worked as general counsel for the National Conference of Bar Examiners and an adjunct professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School, teaching about victims in the criminal justice system and trial advocacy. Judge Karofsky grew up in south-central Wisconsin, earning her bachelor’s degree from Duke University and both a master’s and law degree from University of Wisconsin-Madison. NAWJ is pleased to congratulate Judge Karofsky on her election and we wish her the best of success in her new role on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.