Wednesday, September 11, 2013

DJ Profiles 2/3's Walt Croskey

The DJ reports that "[a]fter a quarter century on the 2nd District Court of Appeal" and 482 published opinions, Justice Croskey "still gets excited about cases," and that enthusiasm is shared by the other justices of Division 3, all whom have been together for almost 20 years. This longest serving panel of justices is "pretty liberal in granting requests to augment the record" and in accepting amicus briefs (and even will sometimes sua sponte request amicus letters or further briefing).

Justice H. Walter Croskey
"I'm accused of being the house conservative."
"Presiding Justice Klein is left of center. Justice Kitching is close to the middle and Justice Aldrich isn't as far right as I am."
 Practitioner quotes include: "He's affable, professional and asks questions because he's sincerely interested. He's not the sort of judge that asks general questions. He's really interested, so he's always talking about the case with specificity." "My advice for [oral argument]: Be prepared, and understand the implications of your argument beyond your individual case. Justice Croskey bores down on the key issues, but he sees the policy issues in the bigger picture, too."

Today's DJ also has an article by appellate specialist JAMS panelist Jerry Falk, Complex Civil Appeals: Making the Case for Settlement.

Also of note: SCOTUSblog Won Readers, Not Clients