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Julie Kaelin
2023 - Present
2031
2
Julie Kaelin is a judge of the Kentucky 30th Circuit Court 4th Division. She assumed office on January 2, 2023. Her current term ends on January 6, 2031.
Kaelin ran for election for judge of the Kentucky 30th Circuit Court 4th Division. She won in the general election on November 8, 2022.
Kaelin completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.
Although the position is officially nonpartisan, Kaelin stated in Ballotpedia's biographical submission form that she was a registered Democrat.[1]
Biography
Julie Kaelin was born and lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She graduated from Presentation Academy in 1997. Kaelin received a bachelor's degree in 2001 and a Juris Doctor in 2005 from the University of Louisville. Her career experience includes working as a public defense attorney and opening her own law firm, Faulkner Kaelin Law Office.[1] She has been associated with KACDL, the National Lawyers Guild, Seneca High School Pre-Law Advisory Board, Louisville Urban League Expungement Program, Faulkner Kaelin Law Office Expungement Program, and the National Criminal Defense College.[1]
Elections
2022
See also: City elections in Louisville, Kentucky (2022)
General election
General election for Kentucky 30th Circuit Court 4th Division
Julie Kaelin defeated Ebert Haegele in the general election for Kentucky 30th Circuit Court 4th Division on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Julie Kaelin (Nonpartisan)  | 59.2 | 121,495 |
 | Ebert Haegele (Nonpartisan) | 40.1 | 82,261 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.7 | 1,518 | ||
| Total votes: 205,274 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled. Ebert Haegele and Julie Kaelin advanced from the primary for Kentucky 30th Circuit Court 4th Division.
Endorsements
To view Kaelin's endorsements in the 2022 election, please click here.
2018
General election
General election for Kentucky 30th District Court 4th Division
Julie Kaelin defeated incumbent Todd Hollenbach in the general election for Kentucky 30th District Court 4th Division on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Julie Kaelin (Nonpartisan) | 62.9 | 134,839 |
 | Todd Hollenbach (Nonpartisan) | 37.1 | 79,538 | |
| Total votes: 214,377 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Selection method
- See also: Nonpartisan election of judges
The judges of the Kentucky District Courts are elected in nonpartisan elections. They serve four-year terms and must run for re-election if they wish to serve again.[2][3]
Qualifications
To serve on this court, a judge must be:[2]
- a U.S. citizen;
- a resident of the represented district for at least two years; and
- licensed to practice law for at least two years.
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Julie Kaelin completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Kaelin's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
Julie was born and raised in Louisville and went to UL. And despite a career counselor telling her she'd never make it in law school, she in fact excelled there. After law school, Julie worked as a personal injury attorney. She realized she liked fighting for the underdog, but was looking for more meaningful work. She was then lucky enough to be hired as a Public Defender, and discovered her love for criminal law. After nearly five years as a PD in Louisville, Julie made the brave step of opening her own law firm. At the time, there was not a single female attorney practicing criminal defense in Louisville without a male partner or associate.
For 8 years Julie assisted people charged with crimes, victims of domestic violence and other crimes, and more. Julie enjoyed an excellent reputation and had a busy practice in both state and federal courts. She taught Trial Practice part-time at the Brandeis School of Law for two semesters, and was a faculty member at the prestigious two-week National Criminal Defense College. She founded multiple free expungement clinics.
In 2018 she was elected to the District Court bench and has served as a Judge since January 2019. Julie has worked tirelessly, often facing harsh criticism, to make changes that benefit the people of Louisville. Julie is thrilled to be running for the position of Circuit Court Judge, and will do everything she can to make sure that the system progresses and that justice prevails.
lawyerEXPERIENCE. I have broad experience. I have been a Public Defender. I have represented victims. I have been a civil lawyer. I have been a business owner. I have tons of trial experience and have taught trial practice to attorneys from around the country. I have been a judge for nearly 4 years, and I have made real change. I hope to continue to do so.
- PROGRESS. Courts should work for the people, not the other way around. I believe in transparency, accountability, and equity. I want people to have faith in our court system and understand it better.
A NEW DAY. Louisville used to elect the same people over and over again: usually white, usually male, usually government lawyers. I ran in 2018 to prove that Louisville wanted something different. And we did it. Let's keep working to make big, needed changes in our system. Vote Kaelin - a different kind of Judge!
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.
2018
Ballotpedia biographical submission form
The candidate completed Ballotpedia's biographical information submission form:
| “ | What is your political philosophy?
District Court Judges have lots of cases and very little time, so it is crucial to have someone on the bench who can very quickly analyze cases in a way that still allows everyone in front of them to be heard. I have the experience and compassion to do so. Also, we have to stop electing the person who spends the most on advertising or has the most recognizable last name. I am running to help prove that a person can win without breaking the bank and without being a Louisville dynasty. I also believe we need to bring the Courts into the modern age and make way more services available online. Finally, it is crucial to the fair and efficient administration of justice that we establish vacation and leave policies for judges.[4] |
” |
| —Julie Kaelin[1] | ||
See also
2022 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Kentucky 30th Circuit Court 4th Division |
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Information submitted on Ballotpedia’s biographical information submission form on August 2, 2018 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "bio" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 2.0 2.1 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Kentucky; Limited Jurisdiction Courts," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ Kentucky Secretary of State, "Election Schedule," accessed July 22, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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
