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Sen Tan
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Sen K. Tan was the presiding superior court judge for the Third Judicial District in Anchorage, Alaska.[1] Tan was appointed on December 4, 1996, by Governor Tony Knowles. He retired on July 1, 2014.[2] He served as the presiding judge of the court from 2011 to through 2013.[3][4][5][6] He retired from the bench in 2014.
Education
Judge Tan graduated from the University of Kent in 1978 with a Bachelor of Arts in Law. In 1982 he graduated with his J.D. from the Northeastern University School of Law in Massachusetts.[7]
Career
- 1996-2014: Superior court judge, Third Judicial District
- 1993-1996: Supervising assistant attorney general, State of Alaska, Department of Law in Anchorage
- 1989-1992: Assistant attorney general, State of Alaska, Department of Law in Anchorage
- 1983-1989: Assistant public defender, Alaska Public Defender Agency in Anchorage
- 1982-1983: Law clerk, Judge Brian Shortell in Anchorage, Alaska
- 1981-1982: Law clerk, Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky, and Popeo in Boston, Massachusetts
- 1981-1982: Legal research and writing instructor, Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, Massachusetts
- 1981: Research assistant, Alaska Judicial Council in Anchorage, Alaska
- 1980-1981: Law clerk, Judge Patrick King in Boston, Massachusetts
- 1980: Law clerk, American Association for the International Commission of Jurists in New York[7]
Elections
2012
Tan was retained to the district court with 55.06% of the vote on November 6th.[8][9]
- See also: Alaska judicial elections, 2012
Opposition to retention
A conservative group called The Family Council is urging voters to vote against Judge Tan's retention, saying he is making the law, not interpreting it. The group has also called the judge a liberal extremist because of his rulings on abortion.[10]
| “ | Most people in the state of Alaska don't understand, in our view, that the state constitution was crafted in such a way that the people have the right to vote on these public servants, which they are, as judges, based on whatever reason they want. - Jim Minnery, The Family Council[11] | ” |
The same group also ran a negative campaign against Justice Dana Fabe in 2010.
Response to negative campaign
In response to The Family Council's attack on Judge Tan, the Alaska Judicial Council has been running newspaper ads supporting Tan.[12]
| “ | Social workers and advocates for Alaska’s abused and neglected children gave him a rare near perfect rating on our surveys. So our feedback from the people who are in the best position to observe judge Tan’s work rate him very highly. We see attacks like this as a threat to the independence and impartiality of our judiciary.[12] - Larry Cohn, executive director of the Alaska Judicial Council[11] | ” |
Retired Judge Elaine Andrews also supported Judge Tan, saying,
| “ | The expectation is you do your job carefully, you follow the law and if people don’t like the decision they appeal it, and if you interpreted the law incorrectly you’re going to get reversed. And if people are unhappy with the judges’ decision don’t like the law it’s based on, they go back to the legislature to get the law changed. That’s the process. And to sort of pick people off for unpopular decisions distorts that democratic process.[12][11] | ” |
See also
External link
Footnotes
- ↑ Alaska Court System: Superior Court judges
- ↑ Current Alaska Judges
- ↑ Anchorage Daily News, "Presiding judges appointed for 2013," December 5, 2012
- ↑ Press Release, "Presiding judges appointed for 2012," December 20, 2011
- ↑ The Republic, "Alaska Judicial Council accepting applications for judgeship on Anchorage Superior Court," January 8, 2014
- ↑ Alaska Public Media, "Judge Sen Tan to Retire," January 7, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Sen Tan's 1996 Judicial Application
- ↑ Alaska Division of Elections, "2012 General Official Candidate List"
- ↑ Alaska Secretary of State: Official 2012 General Election results
- ↑ KTVA, "Family Council Targets Judge Over Social Issues," October 16, 2012
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Alaska Public, "Group Targeting Superior Court Judge Up For Retention," November 1, 2012
Federal courts:
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Alaska • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Alaska
State courts:
Alaska Supreme Court • Alaska Court of Appeals • Alaska Superior Court • Alaska District Court
State resources:
Courts in Alaska • Alaska judicial elections • Judicial selection in Alaska
