It’s the 12 Days of Ballotpedia! Your gift powers the trusted, unbiased information voters need heading into 2026. Donate now!
Jonathan Shamis
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive election coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population as well as mayoral, city council, and district attorney election coverage in state capitals outside of the 100 largest cities. This judge is outside of that coverage scope and does not receive scheduled updates.
Jonathan Shamis is a judge on the Lake County Court in Colorado. He was initially appointed by Lt. Gov. Joseph Garcia (D) in July 2013. Shamis won retention in the general election on November 8, 2016.[1]
Biography
Shamis received a bachelor's degree from the University of Chicago and a J.D. from DePaul University College of Law. Prior to his judicial appointment, Shamis was the executive director of Alpine Legal Services. He was also an adjunct professor at Colorado Mountain College. Shamis had previously been a partner at Fahrenholtz, Kleinschmidt, Stephens and Shamis and a senior attorney and assistant public defender in Cook County, Ill.[2]
Elections
2016
Colorado held judicial retention elections in 2016. Thirty-six county court judges sought retention to four-year terms in the general election on November 8, 2016.
Jonathan Shamis was retained in the Lake County Court, Jonathan Shamis Retention Election with 71.81 percent of the vote.
| Lake County Court, Jonathan Shamis Retention Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes votes | |
| 71.81% | ||
| Source: Colorado Secretary of State, "Unofficial election results," accessed November 8, 2016 | ||
Selection method
Judges of the Colorado County Courts are each appointed by the governor with the help of a commission—except in Denver, Colorado, where judges are appointed by the mayor rather than the governor.[3] Judges are initially appointed to two-year terms and then run in retention elections for four-year terms afterward.[4] To serve on this court, a judge must be a qualified elector and resident of the county and licensed to practice law in the state. Some small counties only require a high school degree or equivalent but require judges to attend an institute to learn about county court duties.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Colorado.gov, "Lt. Gov. Garcia appoints new county court judge," July 31, 2013
- ↑ Colorado State Judicial Branch, "Jonathan Shamis bio," accessed May 1, 2014
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Colorado; Limited Jurisdiction Courts," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ State of Colorado Judicial Branch, "Judicial Nominating Commissions," accessed June 20, 2014
Federal courts:
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Colorado • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Colorado
State courts:
Colorado Supreme Court • Colorado Court of Appeals • Colorado District Courts • Colorado County Courts • Denver Probate Court • Denver Juvenile Court • Colorado Municipal Courts • Colorado Water Courts
State resources:
Courts in Colorado • Colorado judicial elections • Judicial selection in Colorado