Levy's Judges Bill Becomes Law

A bill that would prohibit state trial judges from hearing cases to which current or former colleagues on the bench are parties was signed into law this week.

HB 1193 was signed by Gov. Bill Ritter Monday.

The measure was inspired by a controversy surrounding an adverse possession case in Boulder County. The district judge hearing the case, which involved a land dispute between a former member of the same court and his wife and their neighbors, did not recuse himself.

Under the new law, which takes effect in August, either party to a lawsuit can request the judge to recuse himself or herself if the opposing party is a current or former member of the same court. The judge would have to grant the request and the state supreme court would appoint a judge from another district to hear the case.

Sponsor Claire Levy, D-Boulder, said she introduced the measure after the land dispute involving former Boulder County judge Richard McLean caused some observers to question whether Judge James C. Klein should have refused to hear the case.

McLean, who also served as Boulder mayor, sat on the district court in Boulder County for 15 years.

Another measure, aimed at toughening requirements to obtain title to land under the centuries-old adverse possession doctrine, awaits Ritter's signature.

Rep. Levy's Judges Bill Clears Senate

A bill that would prevent judges from hearing cases in which one of their colleagues is a party has cleared the Senate.

HB 1193 is a response to the kind of situation that occurred in a controversial Boulder adverse possession case last year, in which one of the winning plaintiffs had been a judge on the district court in which the dispute was decided.

The measure, sponsored by Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, will return to the House for consideration of a technical amendment concerning the state's water courts added in the Senate.

Levy's Judge Bill Moves On

A bill by Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, to prevent judges on county courts from hearing cases in which a party is a current or former judge of the same court was approved by a House committee last week.

HB 1193, which the sponsor said is an effort to further bolster public confidence in the impartiality of the judiciary, was unanimously approved by the House Judiciary Committee Feb. 15.

Levy had been criticized last autumn after a Boulder judge awarded title to land owned by Don and Susie Kirlin to a former judge of the same court and his wife.

Levy has said that she introduced HB 1193 to reassure the public that all means reasonably available to assure judicial neutrality are made available by the law.