Ventura Superior Court Elects Presiding & Assistant Presiding Judges for 2013-2014

On September 12, 2012, the Judges of the Ventura Superior Court unanimously elected Judge Brian J. Back as Presiding Judge and Judge Donald D. Coleman as Assistant Presiding Judge for 2013 and 2014. The new term for both begins January 1, 2013.

Judge Back was appointed to the Ventura Municipal Court by Governor Pete Wilson in 1997 and elevated to the Superior Court in 1998 by court unification. He has been a judge for 14 years. He has served as the Superior Court Assistant Presiding Judge since January 2011.

Judge Back is currently assigned to the criminal division. Previous assignments have included juvenile delinquency, family law, guardianship, domestic violence, and adult mental health courts. Judge Back has presided over specialized juvenile drug and mental health calendars and served on numerous professional and community boards and commissions. In 2003, he was named Judge of the Year by the Ventura County Trial Lawyers Association.

Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Back was an attorney with Arnold, Back, Mathews, Wojkowski & Zirbel from 1990 to 1997, Arnold & Back from 1989 to 1990, and Nordman, Cormany, Hair & Compton from 1977 to 1989. His area of specialization was civil litigation and business law.

To read the rest of the public notice, download it here, or visit: http://www.ventura.courts.ca.gov

Public Notice: Ventura County Superior Court Closures Nov 21 and Dec 24, 26, 27, 28 and 31 2012

The majority of the courtrooms and all of the clerk’s offices will be closed on November 21, 2012, December 24, 26, 27, 28 and 31, 2012 to mitigate the impact of employee furlough days on court operations.

These days are not court holidays, so statutory deadlines will not be extended.

However, drop boxes are currently provided outside each clerical office for filing papers or submitting payments. Documents placed in the boxes by 5:00 p.m. are deemed deposited for filing that same business day.

For the 2012-13 fiscal year, the Governor and Legislature have approved a reduction of $540 million, which is in addition to the $652 million, in ongoing budget cuts to the judicial branch that have been in place since 2008. For fiscal year 2012-13, the Ventura Superior Court budget has a structural deficit of $7.2 million remaining after cutting $6 million from its budget through layoffs of 20 court staff, the early separation of 16 court staff, the elimination of 44 vacant positions, reduction of services at the East County Courthouse, and reduction of expenditures for services and supplies.

Anyone wishing to comment on this proposed plan may do so, either by regular mail or e-mail, by November 16, 2012. Please direct your response to:

Michael D. Planet, Court Executive Officer

P.O. Box 6489

Ventura, CA 93006-6489

or

closureresponse@ventura.courts.ca.gov

Download the full public notice here, or visit http://www.ventura.courts.ca.gov for more information.