"Evers' judges" is our effort to present information about Gov. Tony Evers' appointees to the bench. The information is taken from the appointees' own judgeship applications. Italics indicate direct quotes from the application. Typos, including punctuation errors, come from the original application even though we have not inserted “(sic)” after each one. WJI has left them as is. ![]() Name: Jon Richards Appointed to: Milwaukee County Circuit Court Appointment date: Sept. 21, 2020 (elected 2021 to term ending Aug. 1, 2027) Education: Law School – University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin Undergraduate – Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin High School – Waukesha North High School, Waukesha, Wisconsin Recent legal employment: November 2015-present – Attorney and partner, Ziino, Germanotta, Knoll & Christensen, Milwaukee, Wisconsin August 2012-November 2015 – Attorney and shareholder, Richards Law Office, S.C., no longer operating January 1999-December 2014 – State representative, Wisconsin State Assembly January 2012-August 2012 – Attorney, Walny Legal Group, LLC, Milwaukee, Wisconsin September 2009-November 2011 – Attorney, Offices of Emmanuel Mamalakis, S.C., Wauwatosa, Wisconsin April 2002-August 2009 – Attorney, Jeffrey S. Hynes & Associates, S.C., Elm Grove, Wisconsin Bar and administrative memberships: Wisconsin Supreme Court Federal Courts (unspecified) General character of practice: I am a partner in a general practice law firm. My firm has been operating for nearly 70 years and our client base is a broad range of people, some from families who have worked with our firm for many years. I enjoy the challenge of effectively addressing the variety of matters my clients bring to me. I manage my own clients and am, in the vast majority of cases, solely responsible for handling their matters. My practice involves a great deal of interaction with clients, the drafting and review of complex documents, formulating strategies for estate plans and business transactions, litigation and carrying out of negotiations on behalf of my clients. When my clients are involved disputes, I have represented them in the courts, in front of administrative agencies, in arbitrations and in informal negotiations. As one example of my work, two years ago I was the lead attorney representing the seller of a successful, heavily-regulated business with several employees which he had operated for more than three decades. After much negotiation and successful procurement of government approvals, we completed the sale and allowed my client to retire. In another recent matter, I successfully worked with clients to create and obtain IRS recognition for a non-profit organization that uses contributions from the United States to fund the construction and operation of a series of children's homes in Kenya. I also recently worked with a family to handle the affairs of a woman who died, suddenly and unexpectedly, leaving a son. I regularly take on pro bono matters. In my pro bono work I have handled evictions, probate matters, municipal citations, non-profit law, real estate matters, election law and policy projects. In addition to my traditional legal work, I am the director of a multi-disciplinary coalition that is helping to address the opioid crisis and protect Lake Michigan through the safe disposal of unused medicine. Describe typical clients: My clients come from a broad cross-section of society - some far more financially sound, emotionally stable and familiar with the legal system than others. While some of my clients engage me to help them with the legal issues involved with expanding their business, others engage me when they are deeply in debt or when they are being evicted. I have represented plaintiffs in personal injury actions. I have drafted complex estate plans and marital property agreements for affluent clients and drafted simple wills for people with no close relatives and few worldly possessions. I have represented for-profit companies, to handle a wide range of business and corporate governance matters, and non-profit organizations. My practice areas are business counselling including contract negotiations and the buying and selling of businesses, real estate, estate planning, probate administration, landlord-tenant work, family law, disability law, non-profit law and representing plaintiffs in personal injury cases. I have also practiced elections law and have helped with several efforts to ensure that voters are able to cast their votes without unlawful interference. Number of cases tried to verdict: Over my career, the vast majority of my cases have settled before a complete trial to a verdict. I have tried five cases to a verdict. List up to three significant trials, appeals, or other legal matters in which you participated as a judge or lawyer in the past seven years: 1. GTO Stucco & Designs, LLC v. Brookfield Ventures, LLC. Milwaukee County Case Number 18 CV 6964. I represented the plaintiff which was seeking payment for work it had performed. The case was significant because of its relative complexity. It involved several fact and expert witnesses, the application of construction law, the enforcement of a mandatory arbitration clause in the parties' agreement, and the application of arbitration rules to our dispute. Through my own investigation and cultivation of a strong expert witness, we developed a convincing set of facts and legal theories which produced a positive outcome for my client: a good settlement one day before arbitration was to begin. 2. Divall Midland Associates Limited Partnership II v. Kathleen Buck. Ozaukee County Case Number 2019 SC 226. I represented the defendant who was recovering from a stroke. My client asserted that her lease had been wrongfully terminated and that her possessions and car had been unlawfully discarded by the landlord while my client was still in an assisted care facility. The case was challenging because my client had communication challenges due to her stroke, the law was tilted heavily in the landlord's favor, and new facts continually came to light. I was able to overcome those challenges, the landlord dismissed the eviction action they had filed and I was able to resolve the case to my client's satisfaction. 3. Eagle View Manor v. Wisconsin Department of Health Services. Wisconsin Division of Hearings and Appeals Case No. ML-19-0152. I represented the petitioner, the operator of a nursing home that was disputing violations issued against by the Department of Health Services. The case was extremely fact-intensive and involved a significant amount fact gathering, applying those facts to the statutes and administrative rules governing nursing homes and several long and detailed meetings with counsel for the Department of Health Services to challenge their findings, argue the law and address their concerns. We were able to address the department's concerns, they granted the relief my client requested and my client dismissed the appeal. Experience in adversary proceedings before administrative bodies: I have served as the sole attorney representing clients in adversary proceedings before administrative law judges (ALJs) for the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) and for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS). I have also represented clients before municipal licensing committees. My cases before DWD ALJs concerned a.) determining the appropriate party responsible for the workers compensation obligations for a particular set of employees, b.) whether people who work for my clients should be considered independent contractors or employees and c.) whether my client owed unemployment benefits to a terminated employee. In cases before the DHS ALJ I represented the owner of a nursing home to resolve citations issued against properties it owns. Before municipal licensing committees, I have represented clients who were transferring their business license from one party to another or who were seeking to renew their licenses under challenging circumstances. Describe your non-litigation experience (e.g., arbitration, mediation). I have engaged in several forums to resolve disputes through mediation and arbitration. I successfully completed mediation or arbitration in each matter in which I participated. I have successfully arbitrated personal injury cases, disputes over the ownership interests in a company, and disputes over property interests when a couple ended their relationship. Last year, I successfully petitioned the court to compel arbitration to enforce a mandatory arbitration clause in a construction contract. On the eve of the arbitration we settled the case. Position or involvement in judicial, non-partisan, or partisan political campaign, committee, or organization: Milwaukee County Election Counsel for Democratic Party of Wisconsin, 09/2014 to 11/2014 Treasurer, Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee, 2004-2008 Volunteer on many campaigns for President, United States Senate, United States Congress, Mayor, State Assembly and State Senate All offices to which you were appointed or elected: State representative, elected, January 1999-December 2014 Supplemental court commissioner, appointed, June 2017-present Community special prosecutor, appointed, November 2011-April 2012 Previous runs for public office: Attorney general, defeated in August 2014 primary State representative, won elections 1998-2012 All judicial or non-partisan candidates endorsed in the last ten years: Over the years I have endorsed many people for judicial or non-partisan offices. Below is a representative list of those I have endorsed. Jill Karofsky, Supreme Court justice, 2019 Brett Blomme, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2019 Rebecca Kiefer, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2019 Chris Larson, Milwaukee County executive, 2019 Tom Barrett, Milwaukee mayor, 2020, 2016, 2012, 2008, 2004 Jo Casta Zamarripa, Milwaukee alder, 2019 Marina Dimitrijevich, Milwaukee alder, 2019 Lisa Neubauer, Wisconsin Supreme Court justice, 2017 Rebecca Dallet, Wisconsin Supreme Court justice, 2016 Danielle Shelton, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2018 Hannah Dugan, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2016 Kritsi Yang, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2017 Laura Gramling Perez, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2015 Gwen Connelly, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2015 David Feiss, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2014 Joe Donald, Wisconsin Supreme Court justice, 2015 Carolina Stark, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2012 Mark Sanders, Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge, 2011 Chris Abele, Milwaukee County executive, 2012 Louis Butler, Wisconsin Supreme Court justice, 2007 Professional or civic and charitable organizations: American Constitution Society, board member, Milwaukee chapter, 2016-present Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Milwaukee, mentor to my 'little brother,' 2007-2019 Woodlands School, Inc., trustee and committee member, 2019-present Take Back My Meds, MKE, coalition director, September 2015-present Milwaukee County Substance Abuse and Prevention Coalition, member, 2016-present Medical Society of Milwaukee County, board member, 2015-2018 Brady Street Area Association, board member, 2000-2019 Immanuel Presbyterian Church, board member, trustee and Sunday school teacher, assorted dates from 2015-present Wisconsin Center District, board member, 2009-2011 Significant pro bono legal work or volunteer service: My pro bono legal work has included work for clients of LOTUS Legal Clinic, the clients of which are survivors of human trafficking. I have helped them with real estate and probate matters. Another aspect of my work with LOTUS is strengthening the Wisconsin statute that makes it possible for survivors of human trafficking to clear certain convictions from their criminal records that resulted from them being coerced by their traffickers. I have worked with prosecutors, judges and legislators to develop such a statute that can be workable and effective. I have also represented tenants who were being evicted from their apartments or whose property was unlawfully taken by their landlord after the tenant left the premises. I have successfully represented those clients and have had their eviction actions dismissed in Milwaukee and Ozaukee counties. I was a 'big brother', through the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program, for 12 years. We started when my 'little brother' was eight years old and he is now 20 and a father. I have learned a great deal from him and his family and I hope he learned a little from me. Life for my little brother is not, and has never been, easy. My little brother's circumstances were constantly changing. His family moved roughly every year, he had his possessions stolen more than once, and he experienced trauma several times. School was difficult. He is a kind, compassionate young man who likes to take care of others and loves animals. We continue to explore options for him to continue his education and improve his opportunities to make a living. My little brother knows he can come to me anytime, and I check in with him as well. Now that he is a young father he is working to provide for his daughter. His care for her and his commitment are wonderful. For several recent general elections I have served as a volunteer attorney on the Milwaukee Election Protection Team for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. I have monitored polling locations in the City of Milwaukee to ensure that all eligible voters are able to cast their vote and have their vote counted. Finally, I have worked with the students in my Sunday school class to serve meals to homeless women and their families at the Cathedral Center in downtown Milwaukee and have helped pack meals for the homeless through the Larry Under the Bridge homeless meal program. Quotes: Why I want to be a judge: I want to be a judge because I care deeply about Milwaukee County and about the quality and integrity of the courts. I have the experience, temperament, and skill to be a judge who will apply the law accurately and fairly, run their court room efficiently and work to improve a justice system serving the needs of a diverse community where the scales of justice are often woefully unbalanced. My wide-ranging practice over nearly 25 years as an attorney has given me real-world knowledge about how various areas of the law impact people. Even when matters I worked on did not involve large dollar amounts, they almost always involved some of the largest transactions, most important decisions and most consequential moments for my clients. I would bring to the bench a deep understanding of how economics and power shape the issues raised to the court and the behavior of people appearing before the court. I have treated each client of mine with courtesy and respect and believe, whether people are at their best or at their worst, they still have rights that the justice system must honor. As a judge I would treat the people who come before me with that same level of courtesy and respect. I understand the need for judges to be impartial and to provide well-researched, reasoned, consistent and timely decisions that correctly apply the law and take into account the equities of a case. My sixteen years as a state legislator representing Milwaukee gave me invaluable training in dealing with a wide range of people fairly, effectively addressing complex social issues and creating lasting and positive change. I respect and understand what goes into making a law and the vital role of the courts in accurately and consistently interpreting and applying the laws passed by the elected representatives of the people. I believe judges need to be collaborative partners in efforts to make the justice system more accessible, more transparent and more equitable. Judges need to actively seek more knowledge about the forces shaping our society and resulting in matters before the court. I have led several initiatives to bring people together in Milwaukee County to create change. I worked with victims of gun violence and law enforcement officials to attempt to pass a law requiring background checks for gun purchases. I worked with judges in Milwaukee County Children's Court, the Office of the Public Defender, the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office, the City of Milwaukee Office of Violence Prevention and community leaders to lay the groundwork for what became a comprehensive violence prevention plan for the city of Milwaukee modeled on best practices in other cities. I am currently working on an initiative with LOTUS Legal Clinic to address how the law treats survivors of human trafficking. I want to be a judge who will work for reform in our justice system. I want to bring my experience, passion for the community and work-ethic to the work of being a judge. Describe which case in the past 25 years by the Wisconsin Supreme Court or U.S. Supreme Court you believe had a significant positive or negative impact on the people of Wisconsin. I believe that Citizens United v. FEC (2010) has dramatically changed how politics works in our country for the worse. The ruling gave corporations the power to purchase advertising and otherwise participate in elections. It also held that corporations and unions can spend virtually unlimited sums to convince people to vote for or against political candidates, as long as the spending is independent of the candidates. Justice Stevens predicted in his dissent the decision "will undoubtedly cripple the ability of ordinary citizens, Congress, and the States to adopt even limited measures to protect against corporate domination of the electoral process." His prediction has been borne out. After Citizens United, other Supreme Court decisions opened the door to new regulations and laws regarding money and the elections system that benefit corporations at the expense of ordinary citizens. The resulting 'super PACs' and 'dark money' nonprofit organizations have created enormous opportunities for corporations to spend money influencing the political process with ever-diminishing transparency. In the 2014 U.S. Senate elections, as reported by the Center for Responsive Politics, outside spending more than doubled since 2010. In 2018, that figure more than doubled again. Also in 2018, the majority of outside spending on elections came either from dark money nonprofit organizations or groups receiving funding from those organizations. As money has poured into the election system in exponentially higher amounts the voices of ordinary citizens have increasingly been drowned out, the political power of the already rich and powerful has become stronger, and cynicism and division in our political system has grown markedly. The Wisconsin Supreme Court's League of Women Voters, et al. v. Walker, et al. (2014) decision hurt our democracy by upholding Wisconsin's voter identification law that makes voting more difficult for many Wisconsin residents. As Justice Abrahamson wrote in her dissent, "Without any evidence that in-person voter impersonation is a problem in Wisconsin, the voting restrictions the [Court approved gave] Wisconsin the most restrictive voting laws in America." I have seen first-hand, as an attorney monitoring elections in Milwaukee County and as a City of Milwaukee poll worker, the delays, frustration and embarrassment the voter identification law causes. Some citizens who show up to the polls are turned away because they did not have the paperwork required by the new law that would allow them to vote. I believe the restrictive voter identification law upheld by the court was a principal reason why 41,000 fewer people voted in the City of Milwaukee in the 2016 general election, when the law was in place, than in the 2012 general election, when the law was not in place. Two or three judges whom I admire and why: I admire Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's commitment to civil rights, her life-long quest for people to be treated equally under the law and the scholarship, gift for language and common sense she brings to her decisions and dissents. Instead of seeing the law as abstract and untouched by the lives of real people, she brings the real-world experience of litigants into her decisions. Her powerful dissent in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (2007), in which a woman was denied the ability to be paid the same as her male counterparts, called for Congress to address an improper interpretation of the law at issue. That call compelled Congress to take action and pass the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. I admire her belief, as she once stated in an interview, that the Constitution "has broad themes that were meant to grow with an evolving society" and is not a document meant only to govern the world as it existed in the 1780s. For example, with regard to the 14th Amendment, she clarified that gender equality is a constitutional right in United States v. Virginia (I996). Her dissent in Gratz v. Bollinger (2003) argued that in analyzing the equal protection clause in the 14th Amendment "[a]ctions designed to burden groups long denied full citizenship stature are not sensibly ranked with measures taken to hasten the day when entrenched discrimination and its aftereffects have been extirpated." I admire former Justice Shirley Abrahamson for her scholarship, for how she has stressed the importance of an independent court, for her work ethic, and for her focus on individual rights. I agree with her view that the Wisconsin constitution guarantees rights to individuals that are in addition to the rights provided by the United States constitution. I also admire her view, similar to Justice Ginsburg, that the law must evolve to meet the changing the needs of society. In these days when the judiciary is under attack, I admire her call for judicial independence. I admire her eagerness to learn how the courts operate in the lives of people who never appear before the Supreme Court, even serving for a short time to hear cases in Milwaukee County Small Claims Court. Finally, I admire her call for more transparency in the courts and leading the fight to allow cameras in the court. I admire Court of Appeals Judge Joe Donald for his leadership and commitment to the rights of people who appear before the court. As a Circuit Court Judge, he took on challenging leadership assignments, having served twice as the presiding judge in Milwaukee County Children's Court. In being the driving force to establish drug courts in Milwaukee County he has been an effective champion for innovation in the courts. He has consistently championed upholding the rights of individuals who appear before the courts, with a focus on procedural jurisprudence and on ensuring that investigations are done in a consistent and fair manner. The proper role of a judge: The overarching role of a judge is to dispense justice by interpreting and applying the law accurately, even-handedly and in a manner that best serves the community. A judge must ensure that the rights guaranteed to parties under the Constitution, especially due process rights, are protected. Where possible, it is important to set litigants up for success. For example, where addiction is the root cause of behavior that has brought a person before the court, requiring participation in a drug treatment program as part of a sentence. A judge must read through the pleadings and other parts of the case file and give all parties a chance to be heard. A judge must conduct trials in an even-handed manner and allow each side to present their case within the bounds of the rules of evidence and the rules of procedure. After each party has presented their case, the judge must interpret and apply the law, keeping up-to-date with recent developments. Interpretation requires carefully reading not only the laws and court decisions that bear on the matter, it also involves weighing the equities of a case to apply the law fairly and consistently. An important part of being a judge is reaching decisions. Even in difficult cases where the law or equities are not clear, a judge owes the people coming before them the ability to make decisions in an efficient manner. A judge should ensure that when a decision is made the person on the receiving end of the sentence or judgment has participated in the decision and not just had the decision thrust upon them. A judge bears a special responsibility to the community to be engaged in efforts to improve the justice system and the operation of the courts. Where possible, a judge should seek a deeper understanding of forces shaping society and actively work to find practical ways to apply that understanding to their work as a judge within the bounds of the law. A judge should also strive to make the courts and the justice system, to the extent possible, open and accessible to the public, especially to pro se litigants. For example, on the doors to his chambers, former judge Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Charles Kahn, posted a sign stating, "Welcome! This is an open and public courtroom! Please walk in." Former Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Michael Dwyer worked to make procedures in family court easy to understand for pro se litigants. A judge should work to reduce the intimidation and confusion many people feel when approaching the courts.
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