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Schudson’s supporters respond to Kessler’s allegations

By: dmc-admin//January 21, 2004//

Schudson’s supporters respond to Kessler’s allegations

By: dmc-admin//January 21, 2004//

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Foley & Lardner partner Joan Kessler has said she chose to run against Court of Appeals Judge Charles B. Schudson because he was handling fewer cases than his colleagues and he had misused his position to solicit support for his campaign.

The Wisconsin Court of Appeals chief judge and three lawyers have responded with a letter challenging the veracity of Kessler’s statements and asking her to stop making them. The letter from the “Friends of Judge Schudson,” was signed by Judge R. Thomas Cane, Quarles & Brady partner Patricia K. Ballman, Bradley I. Dallet of Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek SC and Mary L. Richards of Emile Banks & Associates LLC. The letter, dated Jan. 15, included a packet of supporting materials.

The letter stated, “Assuming that you would not want to knowingly mislead the public, we are providing you the facts and documentation refuting your claims.

Therefore, we request that you and those working on your behalf cease making false allegations.”

Richards, one of the four people who signed the letter, is the treasurer for Schudson’s campaign. She also worked as his law clerk from 1992-97. Asked what prompted the letter, she said, “We were hearing these allegations and we were offended by them.”

Kessler could not be reached for comment on the letter prior to deadline Monday.

Allegations Against Judge

During an interview Jan. 13, Kessler said, “I am troubled by what I see as his abuse of judicial power.”

Kessler called into question Schudson’s seeking support from the lawyers involved in litigation regarding the Big Blue crane collapse at Miller Park. She referenced a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article discussing how a mailing went out to lawyers representing both sides in the litigation while the case was pending before the court of appeals.

“None of these lawyers with possibly the largest case of their career could have said no when solicited for support by Judge Schudson,” Kessler said.

During an interview the following day, Schudson said the flier, paid for by the Friends of Judge Schudson, went out in a mass mailing to 6,000 lawyers. The document contained the names of supporters including campaign co-chairs Cane, Milwaukee County District Attorney E. Michael McCann and Carey Tradewell Monreal from the Milwaukee Women’s Center. It invited recipients to a “fun-raiser.”

He maintained that the mailing did not specifically target lawyers in cases pending before his court and that he was unaware who the lawyers were in the Big Blue case.

“The allegation is false and terribly unfortunate,” Schudson said. “If it were true, I could be prosecuted and discharged from my duties.”

Kessler questioned the notion that Schudson was unaware that the attorneys in the case would be appearing before him. She noted that one of the lawyers in the case was from Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren sc.

“There could have been no mystery about what judges would be sitting on that panel,” Kessler said. “Judge Patricia Curley is married to a lawyer from Reinhart and from the day she got on that court, any case involving a Reinhart lawyer she does not hear.”

Campaign Law Compliance

The Jan. 15 letter stated that Schudson had complied with judicial campaign laws and had not solicited campaign contributions. The letter did note that, “As countless other judges have done in campaigns for many years, he asked if he could list us as supporters.”

It went on to state, “Judge Schudson never asked us or anyone else to make any financial contributions to his campaign.”

The letter turned the tables and challenged Kessler for personally requesting financial contributions on one of the pages at her Web site in violation of SCR 60.07(4).

Kessler also challenged Schudson’s work ethic and commitment to the rigors of a full-time court job. She noted the large number of speaking engagements he participates in and an ethics statement indicating he had collected thousands of dollars from those efforts.

“I don’t think the people of the state and Milwaukee County are getting their money’s worth,” Kessler said.

She went on to state, “What’s clear is that over the last 10 years, his opinions that dispose of cases average 32 per year. An average of all the other court of appeals judges across the state is 51.”

Schudson said those figures did “not account for the difference in caseloads among the four districts.” Among all of the judges within District I, Schudson said, he and his colleagues handle approximately the same number of cases and they remain current in the handling of those cases.

District Caseload

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Election 2004

The letter supported that contention. It stated, “Your statistics, however, failed to account for the different caseloads of the four appellate districts. Those caseloads are beyond Judge Schudson’s control and, for legitimate reasons (such as the different percentages of one-judge appeals, or the different proportions of criminal/civil cases), some districts may have more cases than others. Decisions to adjust caseloads among the districts are the chief judge’s responsibility.”

The letter also addressed the contention that he was not working full-time. It noted that requests for him to speak increased following the release of the book “On Trial: America’s Courts and Their Treatment of Sexually Abused Children,” which he co-authored. At that time, he contacted the Director of State Courts, the Director of Judicial Education and the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Ethics Board, seeking guidance on how to handle requests and honoraria.

For speaking engagements on state time, the letter stated, Schudson either waived the honoraria or donated them to a judicial education fund administered by the Director of State Courts. Other engagements were handled using vacation time.

Finally, the letter states, “While we support Judge Schudson’s re-election, we would not inaccurately promote him or unfairly criticize you. … Judge Schudson, now as in the past, has campaigned in a fair and positive manner. … We ask that you cease making false allegations and, instead join him on the high road.”

Tony Anderson can be reached by email.

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