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Bar News - November 19, 2004 Governor-Elect, Lynch to Restore 'Merit Process' for Judicial Selection By: Dan Wise Election Roundup THE NEW GOVERNOR "intends to reinstitute some form of merit selection" for state judges, said Manchester attorney Katherine M. Hanna, part of a three-member leadership team heading up Gov.-elect John Lynch’s transition effort. "He is certainly considering looking at creating an advisory committee," said Hanna, who served as chair of the Judicial Selection Commission created by Gov. Shaheen that screened candidates and recommended nominees from 2001-2003. (See page 20: Outgoing Gov. Benson has made four nominations to District Court.)  The constitutional amendment that would have allowed the legislature to negate court rules regarding administration of the judicial branch and other matters, again failed to garner the necessary two-thirds majority for passage. The measure tallied 271,091 yes votes, 205, 589 no votes. Two weeks before the election, Merrimack County Superior Court Judge Kathleen McGuire ordered the Secretary of State to collect all of the "Voters’ Guides" regarding the amendment that had been sent to local election officials for distribution to voters on election day. McGuire acted in response to a lawsuit contending that legislative leaders supporting the amendment produced the guides illegally. The suit was filed by three attorneys (John MacIntosh, Peter Hutchins and Jack Crisp) and the NH Civil Liberties Union. In other election news, four attorneys (all Democrats) will serve in the State Senate in the next session starting in January 2005. In addition to Nashua’s Joseph Foster (District 13), the lone lawyer in the last session who was reelected without opposition on Nov. 2, the state Senate will include:  Peter H. Burling, of Cornish, who had served in the NH House for seven terms, most of that time as House Democratic leader, will represent District 5. He replaces Clifton Below. David Gottesman, of Nashua, in his first bid for elective office, narrowly defeated Rep. Harry Haytayan, to fill the District 12 seat of Jane O’Hearn. Margaret M. Hassan, of Exeter, who triumphed in District 23 over incumbent Sen. Russell Prescott in her second try at the office. Foster welcomed his new colleagues, saying that he believed that relations between the legislature and the courts and the legal community are improving after several years of heightened friction in the aftermath of controversial court decisions on school-funding and the impeachment of the chief justice. "Lawyers have a role to play as ambassadors of the profession and we bring special skills to law making," he said. "This is a legislature without a lot of staff; not every committee has a lawyer assigned to it." Lawyers can provide insight into how a law might be challenged that can result in improvements in how bills are written, said Foster, who served as vice chair of the Judiciary Committee in the last session.  Foster, whose practice at the McLane, Raulerson & Middleton law firm has been concentrated in business bankruptcy matters, will continue to work on economic development and consumer protection matters but he also has a new issue: improving childhood nutrition. Foster’s wife, a physician, has helped make him more aware of the challenges to the health care system from childhood obesity, which can lead to more problems, and higher health care costs, later in life. Hassan also is bringing a family perspective to her legislative duties. Hassan had campaigned on a pledge to work for the repeal of SB 110, the small-group health insurance bill sponsored by her opponent —an issue with a personal dimension. She is the mother of two children, one of them severely disabled. Hassan, a labor and employment lawyer with an office in Exeter, is a member of a Boston-based law firm, Sullivan, Weinstein & McQuay. She said she first became interested in NH policy issues when she was appointed to serve on the Adequacy in Education and Finance Commission that looked at the distribution of state adequacy grants for education in local school districts. Gottesman, of the Nashua firm of Gottesman & Hollis, outpolled Haytayan, a Hudson attorney and first-term state representative, by a mere 137 votes (pending a recount which occurred after Bar News presstime). Their race focused largely on medical malpractice reform. Gottesman, a former president of the NH Trial Lawyers Association, favored retaining plaintiffs’ rights while Haytayan favored legislation to enact a medical screening board to reduce malpractice insurance costs. Gottesman said he would focus on repealing Senate Bill 110, an insurance reform bill that some say is responsible for higher insurance costs. He said more attention should be paid to insurance company profits to reduce costs for physicians struggling to pay liability insurance premiums. Two other attorneys vying for the State Senate, Republican John Lyons of Portsmouth and Democrat Mark Fernald, of Sharon, failed in their bids. The gubernatorial victory of John Lynch was especially important to Hanna, who served as finance chair of Lynch’s campaign. Hanna, as a member of the transition leadership team, said she would be working on a variety of transition issues and helping to plan Lynch’s inauguration. She said that Bar members interested in positions in the Lynch administration should direct inquiries and resumes to Liz Purdy. (At presstime, the Lynch transition office was seeking a new office location.) "He will be seeking out the best possible people—including keeping people who may already be in those positions—for many important positions," Hanna said. "In all of his transition work, John is going to do what he’s best at —reach out and listen to people, including the legislature. He’s already called all of the senators and many of the House leaders."
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