RP Partner Dan Reilly Named to Federal Judicial Selection Advisory Panel by Senators Udall and Bennet
The Following is a Press Release of Senator Mark Udall, Thursday, April 2, 2009
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Senators Udall and Bennet Announce Bipartisan Judicial Selection Advisory Panel to Fill Federal Court Vacancies
Washington, D.C -- Today, Colorado Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet announced the formation of a bipartisan ten-member advisory panel that will implement an open process to recommend highly qualified applicants to fill two vacancies on the United States District Court in Colorado. There is an urgent need to fill the vacancies because as long as they remain open, access to efficient, timely justice is impaired, and sitting Judges are forced to deal with overwhelming dockets.
The formation of this advisory panel reflects Senators Udall and Bennet's interest in a non-partisan, merit selection system endorsed by the American Bar Association and increasingly embraced by Senators from other states around the country.
Former Colorado Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Kourlis will co-chair the advisory committee with Hal Haddon, a prominent Denver lawyer.
The Senators urge qualified individuals to fill out applications and return them to either Senate office by April 14th. Application forms can be found on both Senators’ websites at markudall.senate.gov and bennet.senate.gov. If an applicant applied to Senator Salazar’s committee in 2008 and wishes to resubmit a copy of the same application, with the same letters of recommendation and other attachments that is acceptable. The applicant should review the application to determine that nothing has changed, and should then sign and date the copy for submittal.
“Making recommendations to the White House and confirming judicial nominees is one of the most important jobs I have as a U.S. Senator, and I am particularly pleased that these nine outstanding Coloradans have agreed to advise me and Senator Bennet on the two vacancies we have in Colorado,” Udall said.
“Our federal judges ensure the fair and efficient administration of justice for our citizens, and they serve for a lifetime. I am pleased that Senator Udall and I will have the expert assistance of this bipartisan advisory panel in evaluating potential nominees for these vital appointments, and I am confident that together we will identify outstanding candidates to submit to the President for consideration,” Bennet said.
The advisory panel named by Senators Udall and Bennet includes:
Hal Haddon (co-chair) – Mr. Haddon is currently a partner at the law firm of Haddon, Morgan, Mueller, Jordan, Mackey and Foreman, based in Denver, Colorado.
Rebecca Kourlis (co-chair) – Ms. Kourlis served as a Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court for 11 years, resigning in 2006 to head the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver.
Other panel members include Joseph Garcia, Dale Harris, Diane King, Michelle Lucero, Raymond Moore, Lori Potter, Dan Reilly and Ken Spann.
Attached are biographical descriptions of the panel members:
Hal Haddon (co-chair) – Mr. Haddon has been recognized as “one of the best lawyers in America for 25 years.” He has been an Adjunct Professor of law at Denver University, and a Fellow with the American College of Trial Lawyers. He is currently a partner at the law firm of Haddon, Morgan, Mueller, Jordan, Mackey and Foreman, based in Denver, Colorado.
Rebecca Kourlis (co-chair) – Ms. Kourlis served as a Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court for eleven years, resigning in 2006 to head the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System in Denver, Colorado. Kourlis has received a number of honors, including the American Association of University Women Trailblazer Award in 1998 and the Colorado Women’s Bar Association Mary Lathrop Award in 2001. She is a graduate of Stanford University Law School. She is also a Colorado native and daughter of former Governor John A. Love.
Joseph Garcia – Mr. Garcia is the President of Colorado State University-Pueblo. He has also served as the President of Pikes Peak Community College in Colorado Springs. Mr. Garcia has a diverse professional background that includes law, government and higher education. He has served as the regional administrator of the Department of Housing and Urban Development in the Clinton Administration, and before that as a member of the cabinet for Colorado Governor Roy Romer. Prior to serving in the Romer cabinet, Mr. Garcia was a litigation partner with Holme Roberts & Owen, practicing in the Colorado Springs office.
Dale Harris – Mr. Harris is of counsel with the law firm, Davis, Graham & Stubbs, LLP. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial lawyers and a past president of both the Colorado and Denver Bar Associations. He has served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Mile High United Way and is a Member of the Colorado Supreme Court Judicial Advisory Council. He has been president of the Colorado Association of Corporate Counsel and has extensive experience with complex business and commercial litigation. He is currently the chair-elect of the Borad of Directors of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation.
Diane King – Ms. King is a partner in King & Greisen, LLP. She is a frequent lecturer on employment law and has served as a President and Board Member of the faculty of federal Advocates, the Plaintiff’s Employment Lawyers Association and is a founder and member of the Colorado AIDS Project Legal Referral Service. Ms. King has extensive experience with the federal bench and is currently serving as the chair of the Magistrate Judge Merit Selection Panel for the U.S. District Court for Colorado.
Michelle Lucero – Ms. Lucero is the Vice President of Employee Relations at Centura Health, where she currently oversees all matters related to employment. Prior to her tenure at Centura Health, Lucero served as the Deputy City Attorney for the City and County of Denver from 2003 to 2006. In that position, Lucero had oversight of all federal court matters. Lucero has a diverse professional and community background, serving as a Trustee for Metropolitan State College, the Littleton Public Schools Facilities Task Force and the Kroenke Sports' Hispanic Advisory Council. Lucero is a graduate of Rockhurst College, the CU Law School and is a native of Colorado
Raymond Moore – Mr. Moore is the Federal Public Defender for the Districts of Colorado and Wyoming. He serves on the Criminal Justice Act Standing Committee both for the District of Colorado and the Tenth Circuit. In prior years he was an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado. Mr. Moore was the first recipient of the Alfred A. Arraj Advocacy Award presented by the Colorado Chapter of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He is currently a Fellow with the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Lori Potter – Ms Potter is with Kaplan Kirsch & Rockwell, based in Denver. She has served as an attorney for the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund and has been listed in “Best Lawyers in America” since its inception for her extensive work in environmental, water, public lands law and related federal litigation. She was one of the founding directors of the Faculty of Federal Advocates and Chair of the Civil Justice Reform Act advisory committee for the District of Colorado.
Dan Reilly – Mr. Reilly is a founding member of the trial firm Reilly Pozner LLP. He is a civil trial lawyer with extensive experience in the federal courts. In 2000, he was inducted into the American College of Trial lawyers and the American Board of Trial Advocates. He has been listed in “The Best Lawyers in America” annually since 1995 and was honored by the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association for Best Amicus Brief. Mr. Reilly has represented the ownership of the Denver Broncos and has handled a broad spectrum of civil litigation for both plaintiffs and defendants over 27 years.
Ken Spann – Mr. Spann is a fifth generation Coloradan, a lawyer-rancher, and Vice President of Spann Ranches, Inc., one of the longstanding family-owned, great commercial cattle ranches in Colorado. Mr. Spann has also served on the Board of the Upper Gunnison River Water Conservancy District and has extensive experience with the livestock industry, public lands management, water law and environmental law, including directly representing the National Cattlemen's Association on issues pertaining to federal land management before Congress and several Administrations. Mr. Spann served on the Colorado Rangeland Reform Panel convened by former Colorado Governor Roy Romer to advise the U.S. Department of the Interior on grazing regulations. He is a graduate of the University of Colorado School of Law.
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