Candidate for
Superior Court Judge; County of Alameda; Office 20

In the same year that I became a member of the Bar, Supreme Court Justice Warren Burger said in his State of the Judiciary Address that "The entire legal profession + lawyers, judges, law school teachers + has become so mesmerized with the stimulation of the courtroom contest that we tend to forget that we should be healers of conflict."

I am seeking this office because I want to help make Justice Burger's vision a reality: to help our justice system emphasize conflict resolution over glorifying the courtroom contest. Nearly three decades of experience in the courtroom and in the community have prepared me for that task and this responsibility. As an Alameda County Superior Court Judge, I'll be focused on making the court an institution of solutions.

My passion for the law has deep roots in the world in which I was raised. My mother entered law school in 1961, when few women did, going to school at night while she raised me and my older brother. She graduated first in her law school class when I was 7 years old, went into private practice, then ultimately became Chief Assistant Law Director of the City of Cleveland. Having lived under roofs housing the world of law -- at dinner tables, in my mother's conference rooms, in my uncle's court chambers + I started my legal education at an early age. When I was in high school, I worked summers in the City Prosecutor's office or the City Law Department, helping to organize the prosecutors' evidence and other administrative tasks. I went to law school immediately upon graduating from college, working one summer as a law clerk for California Court of Appeals Justice Coleman Blease, and another summer as a law clerk at a law firm. I graduated from law school when I was 24, and have practiced law ever since.

Today, nearly three decades later, I have handled hundreds of cases, often representing victims of discrimination and wrongful termination from employment. I have also built a successful practice as an arbitrator and a mediator, resolving over a hundred cases over the years. I continue to volunteer as an arbitrator of conflicts between persons who are homeless and the staff of homeless shelters as part of a unique program overseen by the San Francisco Department of Human Services. I have also served as a Commissioner and the Chair of the City of Oakland Public Ethics Commission, to help improve access to public documents, ensure integrity in the conduct of government officials, and create a culture of openness in government affairs.

I want to put my deep experience to work as your next Superior Court Judge, as someone you can trust to embrace conflict resolution and healing as part of the process of justice. I hope to earn your support, and ask for your vote.

Sincerely,

Andrew Wiener