Judge James Mize Named Judicial Officer of the Year by Family Law Section of State Bar
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| Family Court Supervising Judge James Mize |
Sacramento Family Court reform advocates were baffled by the selection of Mize, who they say since being named supervising judge has done nothing to correct long-running problems and infighting at the William Ridgeway Family Relations Courthouse.
Mize took the helm of the troubled family court system in April after controversial Judge Jaime Roman stepped down from the post before serving out his full term. Roman's premature exit was attributed to harassment by former Supervising Judge Matthew Gary, who Roman replaced mid-term under a cloud of controversy on orders from Presiding Judge Laurie Earl.
Family court watchdogs assert that Mize is too cozy with lawyers from the Sacramento County Bar Association Family Law Section, has neglected the needs of the 70 percent of court users who can't afford legal representation, and refuses to enforce court employee and judge disciplinary polices.
To view the Sacramento County Superior Court press release about the Judicial Officer of the Year award, click Read more >> below:
Sacramento Superior Court Judge James Mize has been named “Judicial Officer of the Year” by the Family Law Section of the State Bar of California. He will be honored on October 11, 2013 at the Family Law Section Reception at the State Bar Conference in San Jose, CA.
Judge Mize earned his A.B. degree in 1968 and M.S.W. in 1971 from the University of California, Berkeley. He received his Juris Doctorate degree in 1974 from the University of San Francisco School Of Law.
Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Mize worked for over 25 years as a sole practitioner with an emphasis in Family Law, and was a Certified Specialist in Family Law where he was considered to be a leader and premier family law attorney. Judge Mize served as President of the Sacramento County Bar Association, the California and Sacramento Young Lawyers Associations, Capitol City Trial Lawyers Association, and served on the Board of Directors for the Association of Certified Family Law Specialists, to name a few.
Judge Mize was appointed to the Sacramento Superior Court in 2000 by Governor Davis. He has served as the Presiding Judge and Assistant Presiding Judge between November 2005 and January 2010, and presently serves as the Supervising Judge of the Family Law and Probate Courts.
Judge Mize is a previous recipient of the California Judges Association Bernard Jefferson Award for Excellence in Judicial Teaching in 2011 and the Sacramento County Bar Association’s “Judge of the Year” Award in 2009 as well as other community-based awards, including, the Center for Youth’s Citizenship 2008 Education and Community Outreach Award and the California Judge’s Association’s 2007 Alba Witkin Humanitarian Award.
He is also an educator throughout the year and has taught courses at the Center for Judiciary Education and Research, California Judge’s Association, and the Administrative Office of the Court’s Center for Children, Families and the Courts. His most recent accomplishment involved the creation of the “One Day Divorce” program where cooperating couples or single parties whose spouses have defaulted may complete their divorce in a day.
Sacramento Superior Court Presiding Judge, Laurie Earl, stated, “I am proud of Judge Mize, as all of his colleagues on the Sacramento Superior Court are for his tireless efforts in improving justice for California’s citizens. He is passionate, innovative, creative and hard-working and that is all truly reflected in this much deserved recognition. We are honored to call him one of our own.”
In addition to his professional accomplishments, Judge Mize is also dedicated to helping families in the Sacramento community. He volunteers for multiple community service agencies and is the founder and general coordinator of “Sharing God’s Bounty” a weekly free meal program at St. Philomene’s Catholic Church in Sacramento.
Judge Mize was selected as the 2013 Judicial Officer of the Year by the Family Law Section of the State Bar of California for his excellence on the family law bench, as well as his outstanding service to the practice of family law.
Judge Mize earned his A.B. degree in 1968 and M.S.W. in 1971 from the University of California, Berkeley. He received his Juris Doctorate degree in 1974 from the University of San Francisco School Of Law.
Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Mize worked for over 25 years as a sole practitioner with an emphasis in Family Law, and was a Certified Specialist in Family Law where he was considered to be a leader and premier family law attorney. Judge Mize served as President of the Sacramento County Bar Association, the California and Sacramento Young Lawyers Associations, Capitol City Trial Lawyers Association, and served on the Board of Directors for the Association of Certified Family Law Specialists, to name a few.
Judge Mize was appointed to the Sacramento Superior Court in 2000 by Governor Davis. He has served as the Presiding Judge and Assistant Presiding Judge between November 2005 and January 2010, and presently serves as the Supervising Judge of the Family Law and Probate Courts.
Judge Mize is a previous recipient of the California Judges Association Bernard Jefferson Award for Excellence in Judicial Teaching in 2011 and the Sacramento County Bar Association’s “Judge of the Year” Award in 2009 as well as other community-based awards, including, the Center for Youth’s Citizenship 2008 Education and Community Outreach Award and the California Judge’s Association’s 2007 Alba Witkin Humanitarian Award.
He is also an educator throughout the year and has taught courses at the Center for Judiciary Education and Research, California Judge’s Association, and the Administrative Office of the Court’s Center for Children, Families and the Courts. His most recent accomplishment involved the creation of the “One Day Divorce” program where cooperating couples or single parties whose spouses have defaulted may complete their divorce in a day.
Sacramento Superior Court Presiding Judge, Laurie Earl, stated, “I am proud of Judge Mize, as all of his colleagues on the Sacramento Superior Court are for his tireless efforts in improving justice for California’s citizens. He is passionate, innovative, creative and hard-working and that is all truly reflected in this much deserved recognition. We are honored to call him one of our own.”
In addition to his professional accomplishments, Judge Mize is also dedicated to helping families in the Sacramento community. He volunteers for multiple community service agencies and is the founder and general coordinator of “Sharing God’s Bounty” a weekly free meal program at St. Philomene’s Catholic Church in Sacramento.
Judge Mize was selected as the 2013 Judicial Officer of the Year by the Family Law Section of the State Bar of California for his excellence on the family law bench, as well as his outstanding service to the practice of family law.
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