Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association issues ratings for Judicial Candidates

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TACOMA-PIERCE COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION ISSUES RATINGS FOR JUDICIAL CANDIDATES

TACOMA (September 23, 2022) – The Judicial Qualifications Committee (JQC) of the Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association (TPCBA) has completed its ratings for judicial candidates seeking election to the position of Pierce County Municipal Court Judge.

During 2022, the Judicial Qualifications Committee interviewed three candidates for Municipal Court Judge and has issued the ratings set forth below. Candidates who did not request an interview were not rated. One candidate was not rated because she was a recent member of the committee.

The TPCBA rates judicial candidates as a service to voters. A description of the factors that the committee considers in assigning a rating are attached.

The JQC is an independent standing committee of the TPCBA. Since 2014, the committee has been composed of between 20 and 26 practicing attorneys. This year, the TPCBA president also appointed four non-attorneys to sit on the JQC. At least 12 JQC members must be present to have a quorum at the candidate interview.

The JQC does not compare opposing candidates in a particular contested race, but rather evaluates each candidate on her or his own individual merit. The names of the candidates for the Municipal Court and their ratings if any, are listed below:

• Reed Speir: Qualified
• Sergio Flores: Well Qualified
• Steve Krupa: Exceptionally Well Qualified
• Dee Sonntag: Not rated*

*Ms. Sonntag is not rated because she was a member of the Judicial Qualifications Committee within the past year and is therefore ineligible to receive a rating according to the rules governing the Committee.

Media Contact:
Kit Kasner, Director
Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association
253 272-8871
Director@tpcba.com

Criteria for Ratings of Attorneys Seeking a Judicial Position