Carl Devine

This page was current at the end of the official's last term in office covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Carl Devine

Prior offices

Kentucky 22nd Circuit Court Family Court 6th Division

Successor: Tiffany Yahr

Predecessor: Kathy Stein

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Elections and appointments

Last election

November 8, 2022

Contact

Campaign website

Carl Devine was a judge of the Kentucky 22nd Circuit Court Family Court 6th Division. Devine assumed office on April 26, 2022. Devine left office on January 2, 2023.

Devine ran for re-election for judge of the Kentucky 22nd Circuit Court Family Court 6th Division. Devine lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.

Devine completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Devine was appointed to the court by Governor Andy Beshear (D) on March 7, 2022, to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Kathy Stein.

Elections

2022

See also: City elections in Lexington, Kentucky (2022)

General election

General election for Kentucky 22nd Circuit Court Family Court 6th Division

Tiffany Yahr defeated incumbent Carl Devine in the general election for Kentucky 22nd Circuit Court Family Court 6th Division on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tiffany Yahr (Nonpartisan)	50.1	36,082
		Carl Devine (Nonpartisan)	49.9	35,946

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 72,028
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

The primary election was canceled. Incumbent Carl Devine and Tiffany Yahr advanced from the primary for Kentucky 22nd Circuit Court Family Court 6th Division.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Carl Devine completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Devine's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I was appointed by Governor Andy Beshear on March 7th, 2022 after he determined that I was the most qualified person for this position. Prior to being appointed, I practiced extensively in every area of family law for 25 years. I have extensive trial experience in the following types of cases: a) high asset divorces; b) custody and timesharing; c) domestic violence; d) dependency, abuse and neglect; e) child support; f) adoption; g) paternity; and h) grandparent visitation. I had over 2,000 clients and was involved in approximately 1,700 cases. I graduated from the J. David Rosenberg University of Kentucky College of Law in 1997. I graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown College in 1994. Since becoming a Fayette Family Court Judge, I have applied my unmatched experience to serve the families and children of Fayette County by ensuring that everyone that comes before the Court is treated in an unbiased and equitable manner. There is no broad brush with which to paint each case. I have been and will continue to be mindful that the law must be fairly and equitably applied in each case. I am patient, kind, and have the demeanor and temperament necessary for this position. I encourage anyone that wants to inquire about my performance on the bench to contact any family law attorney that has appeared before me on any docket.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• It is absolutely vital that the Family Court apply the law being mindful of each and every person that appears before the Court. The court system must be conscientious of avoiding any type of bias, whether it be direct or implicit. The court must not assume what a particular situation is. The court must be open minded and ensure that it begins each case with the proverbial “clean slate”. This approach is crucial in order for the courts to equitably apply the law. I am confident I am proceeding in this manner in each and every case since being appointed to this position. I received the CFAIR endorsement. CFAIR is an organization that is dedicated to ensuring that each individual, no matter their race, gender, or ethnicity is treated fairly.
• Since being appointed, I started a separate pro se (litigants that cannot afford to hire an attorney) docket so that those that are pro se are not required to wait hours in motion hour while the people that can afford attorneys get to go first. With the pro se docket, the parties are afforded their own time to present their cases and they are treated with the exact same respect that those people that can afford attorneys receive. As such, the pro se litigants are truly provided equal access to justice, which is what our courts are supposed to be about.
• The Family Court has a domestic violence docket, a child support docket and a dependency, abuse, and neglect docket each week. This has afforded me the ability to connect with people in the age range that is statistically most likely to be involved with gun violence. When I encounter people within this age range, it has afforded me the opportunity to proactively connect them with community services, such as mentorship programs, so we can re-direct them from activity that may lead them to gun violence and/or domestic violence. It is vital that we do more as a Family Court, given the number of people we encounter each and every day.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

As a Family Court Judge, I am passionate about using this platform to do everything possible in every context to help our community. From the pro se docket that I started, to connecting those most vulnerable, to becoming involved in gun violence and/or domestic violence prevention, to ensuring that I do everything I can to make sure that father's play an active role in the lives of their children, I am working everyday to do whatever I can with this platform to help our community and to protect our community's most valuable asset - our children. I will continue to work tirelessly to do all I can to make sure that we protect the children in the communities served by the Fayette Family Court. But, there are also cases in Family Court that do not involve children. It is just as important in those circumstances, i.e. high asset/complex divorces cases to domestic violence cases in which children are not involved, that those cases are handled as competently as any other case before the Family Court. My 25 years of experience in every area of family law ensures that each person that comes before the Court will not only be treated with dignity, respect and fairly but will also have the law applied appropriately and in a prompt manner.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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Candidate

Kentucky 22nd Circuit Court Family Court 6th Division

Website

Footnotes

Kentucky courts

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Federal courts:

Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Kentucky, Western District of Kentucky • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Kentucky, Western District of Kentucky

State courts:

Kentucky Supreme Court • Kentucky Court of Appeals • Kentucky Circuit Courts • Kentucky District Courts • Kentucky Family Court

State resources:

Courts in Kentucky • Kentucky judicial elections • Judicial selection in Kentucky