Judith Olson

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Judith Olson
Image of Judith Olson
Pennsylvania Superior Court
Tenure

2010 - Present

Term ends

2030

Years in position

15

Compensation

Base salary

$239,059

Elections and appointments
Last elected

November 5, 2019

Education

Bachelor's

St. Francis University, 1979

Law

Duquesne University School of Law, 1982

Contact

Judith Olson (Republican Party) is a judge of the Pennsylvania Superior Court. She assumed office on January 4, 2010. Her current term ends on January 7, 2030.

Olson ran for re-election for judge of the Pennsylvania Superior Court. She won in the retention election on November 5, 2019.

She was elected to a 10-year term on November 3, 2009, effective January 2010.[1][2]

Olson ran for election to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 2015.[3] She won the Republican primary but was defeated in the general election.

Biography

Education

Olson received her undergraduate degree from Saint Francis University in 1979 and her J.D. from the Duquesne University School of Law in 1982.[2] She graduated second in her law school class. Olson and her husband, Joe, have two children.[4][5]

Career

Awards and associations

Awards

  • 2011: North Hills School District Distinguished Alumni Award
  • 2008: Earl G. Harrison Community Service Award
  • 2005: Allegheny County Bar Foundation – Inducted as Fellow
  • 2004: Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County – Inducted as Fellow
  • 2004-2008: Named by Law & Politics Magazine as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer® in Business Litigation
  • 2004: Named by Law & Politics Magazine as one of the Top 50 Female Lawyers in Pennsylvania
  • 2004: Graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh –Class XX
  • 1999: American Heart Association Volunteer of the Year Award
  • 1999: Community Champion Award
  • “AV” rating from Martindale-Hubbell[4]

Associations

  • 2007-2008: Member of board of governors
  • 2007-2008: Chair of Federal Court Committee
  • 2008: Member of ad hoc committee on Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas Commercial Court Rules
  • St. Francis University, Loretto, Pennsylvania, member of board of trustees
  • American Heart Association—National Organization
  • American Heart Association—Great Rivers Affiliate
  • American Heart Association—Allegheny Division
  • Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, past member of Diocesan Pastoral Council
  • Saints John & Paul Catholic Church
  • Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
  • Operation Good Neighbor Foundation, past member of board of advisors
  • Career Literacy for African American Youths (CLAAY)[4]

Elections

2019

See also: Pennsylvania intermediate appellate court elections, 2019

General election

General election for Pennsylvania Superior Court

Incumbent Judith Olson won election in the general election for Pennsylvania Superior Court on November 5, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Judith Olson
Judith Olson (Nonpartisan)
 
100.0
 
1,461,332

Total votes: 1,461,332
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2015

See also: Pennsylvania judicial elections, 2015

Pennsylvania's judicial elections included a primary on May 19, 2015, and a general election on November 3, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates was March 11, 2015.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Three seats, General Election, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Kevin M. Dougherty 18.5% 1,079,835
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.png David N. Wecht 18.4% 1,070,568
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Christine Donohue 18.2% 1,059,167
     Republican Judith Olson 15.2% 887,409
     Republican Michael A. George 13.6% 796,124
     Republican Anne Covey 13.6% 795,330
     Independent Judicial Alliance Paul P. Panepinto 2.5% 144,403
Write-in votes 0% 0
Total Votes 5,832,836
Source: Pennsylvania Department of State, "Unofficial General Election Results," November 3, 2015


Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Three seats, Republican Primary, 2015
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.png Judith Olson 22.1% 177,199
Green check mark transparent.png Michael A. George 21.7% 173,683
Green check mark transparent.png Anne Covey 20.2% 161,680
Cheryl Lynn Allen 13.9% 111,112
Rebecca L. Warren 11.7% 93,688
Correale Stevens Incumbent 10.5% 83,815
Write-in votes 0% 0
Total Votes 801,177
Source: Pennsylvania Department of State, "2015 Municipal Primary Unofficial Results," May 19, 2015

Recommendation

The Pennsylvania Bar Association highly recommended Olson during its second round of ratings, calling her a "keen legal thinker and the author of well-reasoned and well-written opinions."[7]

Endorsements

  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Pro-Life
  • Firearm Owners Against Crime
  • Pennsylvania State Troopers Association
  • Action of PA
  • Fraternal Order of Police, Pennsylvania State Lodge
  • Pittsburgh Post-Gazette[8]

Race background

Three open seats were up for election on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 2015. Going into the primary, there were 12 candidates running for the court. One open seat was the result of the retirement of Chief Justice Ronald Castille in December 2014. The other two seats were made vacant by resignations. In May 2013, Justice Joan Orie Melvin resigned after her conviction for campaign corruption. The second resignation occurred in October 2014, when Justice Seamus P. McCaffery left the court due to both his implication in an FBI investigation involving the exchange of referral fees between his wife and several law firms, and his involvement in a scandal wherein sexually explicit emails were forwarded from his personal email account to court employees.

Justice Correale Stevens was appointed to the bench by Governor Tom Corbett (R) in June 2013 to replace Joan Orie Melvin. He ran unsuccessfully in 2015 to keep his seat on the court.[9]

Campaign finances in the primary

May reporting period
The candidates for the May 19 primary had $2,127,498.74 in cash on hand as of the last pre-primary reporting period. Michael A. George (R) had the most cash on hand at $497,325.16, while Rebecca L. Warren (R) had the lowest total at $2,574.97. The biggest contribution during this reporting period was $50,000 from Ronald Caplan, president of PMC Property Group, to Democratic candidate Kevin M. Dougherty.

April reporting period
Three candidates reported campaign receipts exceeding $500,000 in finance reports filed on April 7. Kevin M. Dougherty (D) took the cash-on-hand lead with $584,666.22 in the bank, followed by David N. Wecht (D) at $546,220.24 and Michael A. George (R) at $508,459.63. Eight of the nine remaining primary candidates totaled approximately $898,000 on hand by early April, with Rebecca L. Warren (R) having a negative cash balance. The fundraising advantage through March rested with Democratic candidates, who totaled $1.94 million on hand compared to $595,000 for Republican candidates.[11]

April 8 candidate forum

A candidate forum at the Free Library of Philadelphia on April 8 showcased candidate concerns over the influence of money in judicial elections. Five candidates participated in the forum: Anne Lazarus (D), John H. Foradora (D), David N. Wecht (D), Dwayne D. Woodruff (D) and Cheryl Lynn Allen (R). All of the candidates at the forum argued that more campaign cash presented issues for judicial races, though none believed that eliminating elections would be the right solution. Foradora argued that campaign cash potentially damages the court's integrity, while Woodruff suggested that higher finance requirements presented a barrier to entry for qualified candidates. Allen advocated for nonpartisan elections as a counterweight to increasing partisanship on the court.[13]

Failed nominations

In February 2015, Governor Tom Wolf (D) nominated both Ken Gormley, a law professor for the Duquesne University School of Law, and Judge Thomas Kistler of the Centre County Court of Common Pleas. However, after a Christmas email sent by Kistler and a halt to confirm Gormley, Wolf said he planned no further nominations to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.[14]

Kistler asked that his nomination be withdrawn after a report surfaced of a racially insensitive e-greeting sent out by Kistler to friends in 2013. The e-greeting depicted a black couple, with the male wearing prison garb behind a glass window and his female visitor speaking to him via a jailhouse phone. The caption attached to the e-greeting said, "Merry Christmas from the Johnsons," and Kistler sent the greeting with a subject heading of "Best Christmas card ever."[15]

Gormley's nomination came under scrutiny when reports of harassment complaints filed in 2006 against Gormley were circulated among the Senate Judiciary Committee. An internal Duquesne University report, which had been cited in a lawsuit filed against Gormley, recommended that Gormley not supervise women because he had shared "an unsubstantiated rumor" regarding a female professor. The suit was later settled by the female professor and the university.[15]

2009

Superior Court: Judge Judy Olson (2009)

Olson was elected to one of four open seats on the Pennsylvania Superior Court in 2009. She said that one of her goals is to reclaim the public's trust in the judiciary: "A very critical issue is the lack of confidence that the public has in the court system. Everybody in the legal system, from the bar or the bench, has an obligation to try and regain that public trust."[6][16]

Candidate IncumbentPartyPrimary %Election %
Supreme-Court-Elections-badge.png
Judith Olson ApprovedA NoRepublican37.1%15%
Sallie Mundy ApprovedA NoRepublican33.5%13.7%
Paula Ott ApprovedA NoRepublican12.7%
Anne Lazarus ApprovedA NoDemocratic11.4%
Robert Colville NoDemocratic11.4%
Templeton Smith NoRepublican29.3%11.4%
Kevin McCarthy NoDemocratic11.2%
Teresa Sarmina NoDemocratic10.9%
Marakay Rogers NoLibertarian2%


Campaign themes

2019

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Judith Olson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2019 Candidate Connection survey.

2015

My judicial philosophy is rooted in the notion that we must adhere to the necessity of preserving the separation of powers of the three branches and to acknowledge the important role each must play in government. The judicial branch is charged with interpreting the laws enacted by the legislature. It is the job of a judge to review matters of law and not to act as a “superlegislature,” by imposing “judge-made” law in place of democratically elected officials. To do otherwise is to create a threat to the values of stability and predictability. Judicial restraint is the only judicial philosophy that preserves those values – values which are paramount to the proper maintenance of a majoritarian system such as our own.

I also believe that all parties are equal in the eyes of the law and must be treated fairly and impartially. Every litigant is entitled to his or her day in court and must be treated with respect. In fact, the touchstone of my philosophy is respect. It is paramount that a judge respect the law, the legal system, the lawyers and the litigants. [17]

—Olson's campaign website (2015)[18]

Judicial philosophy

My judicial philosophy is rooted in the notion that we must adhere to the necessity of preserving the separation of powers of the three branches and to acknowledge the important role each must play in government. The judicial branch is charged with interpreting the laws enacted by the legislature. It is the job of a judge to review matters of law and not to act as a “superlegislature,” by imposing “judge-made” law in place of democratically elected officials. To do otherwise is to create a threat to the values of stability and predictability. Judicial restraint is the only judicial philosophy that preserves those values – values which are paramount to the proper maintenance of a majoritarian system such as our own.

I also believe that all parties are equal in the eyes of the law and must be treated fairly and impartially. Every litigant is entitled to his or her day in court and must be treated with respect. In fact, the touchstone of my philosophy is respect. It is paramount that a judge respect the law, the legal system, the lawyers and the litigants.[17]

—Judge Judy Olson[19]

See also


External links

Footnotes

  1. Pennsylvania Department of State, "2009 Pennsylvania Municipal Election Returns"
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania, "Biography of Judge Olson"
  3. Trib Live News, "Judicial candidate vows to restore faith in system," February 6, 2015
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Elect Judge Judy for Pennsylvania Supreme Court, "About Judge Judy," accessed April 27, 2015
  5. Pennsylvania GOP, "Superior Court Judge Judy Olson Talks To The Beaver Countian About Justice In Pennsylvania," March 30, 2015
  6. 6.0 6.1 Standard Speaker, "Court candidate: System must regain public trust," October 20, 2009
  7. Pennsylvania Bar Association, "Judicial Evaluation Commission Releases Second Round of 2015 Judicial Ratings," February 10, 2015
  8. Elect Judge Judy for Pennsylvania Supreme Court, "Endorsements," accessed April 27, 2015
  9. TribLive.com, "Much at stake as 16 vie for historic 3 vacancies on Pa. Supreme Court," January 11, 2015
  10. Pennsylvania Department of State, "Campaign Finance Online Reporting," accessed May 18, 2015
  11. TribLive, "3 candidates for Pennsylvania Supreme Court have more than $500k on hand for primary election," April 7, 2015
  12. Pennsylvania Department of State, "Campaign Finance Online Reporting," accessed April 22, 2015
  13. Philly.com, "5 running for Pa.'s top court agree: Judicial races cost too much," April 8, 2015
  14. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Senate GOP may not fill 2 vacancies on Pennsylvania’s high court," February 24, 2015
  15. 15.0 15.1 Philly.com, "Two Supreme Court nominees under fire," February 22, 2015
  16. Pennsylvania Department of State, "2009 Municipal Election, Judge of the Superior Court results"
  17. 17.0 17.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  18. Judge Judy Olson for Supreme Court, "Judicial Philosophy," accessed April 26, 2015
  19. Elect Judge Judy for Pennsylvania Supreme Court, "Judicial Philosophy," accessed April 27, 2015