Milwaukee County Branch 40 judicial candidates Jones and Shelton discuss their litigation experience

Election Day is April 2.

By Gretchen Schuldt

Danielle Shelton and Andrew Jones are competing for the Branch 40 judicial seat vacated by Rebecca Dallet when she was elected to the State Supreme Court in April 2018. Jones has held the seat since August, when he was appointed by former Gov. Scott Walker.

This is the only contested Milwaukee County judicial race this spring. Shelton and Jones agreed to answer a series of questions from WJI to better inform voters about the race.

Question 6: Describe your legal experience as an advocate in criminal litigation, civil litigation, and administrative proceedings. 

Jones

1998-2018 Whyte Hirschboeck Dudek S.C./Husch Blackwell, LLP 
 
As an associate and then shareholder/partner at Whyte Hirschboeck and Husch Blackwell (following the merger of the two firms in 2016), I advised companies, governmental entities, and individuals in a broad range of constitutional, compliance, employment, land use, and commercial litigation matters, including class action proceedings. I represented clients in jury and bench trials and on appeal at all levels of the state and federal court systems, including the Wisconsin Court of Appeals and Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court. I also represented employers in administrative hearings before the Wisconsin Equal Rights Division and in private labor arbitrations.   
 
I was an elected member of the board of directors of Whyte Hirschboeck from July 2012 until August 2016 and of Husch Blackwell between August 2016 and when I resigned from the firm to take my seat on the bench in September 2018.  In addition, I served in numerous other leadership positions during my time at the firms, including as a member of the executive recruiting committee for the Wisconsin offices of Husch Blackwell, as the shareholder director of the Whyte Hirschboeck associate development program (WHD University), as a shareholder director of the Whyte Hirschboeck associate mentor program, as a member of Whyte Hirschboeck’s diversity and inclusion committee.

1994-1998 Office of the Corporation Counsel, New York City Law Department 
 
As an Assistant Corporation Counsel, I represented New York City and its employees in a wide range of constitutional, employment, and civil service litigation before the federal and state courts in New York. 

1991-1994 University of Wisconsin Law School 
 
Summer Clerk, NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund
Intern, Office of the Public Intervenor, Wisconsin Department of Justice
Intern, Justice Shirley Abrahamson, Wisconsin Supreme Court 

Jones' resume is here. Personal information, such as telephone numbers, personal email addresses, and the names of people not directly involved in the campaign have been redacted.

https://www.judgeandrewjones.com/  

Shelton

​I am currently an Assistant State Public Defender. During my time as an Assistant Public Defender I have become a well-known and respected litigator. I have conducted scores of motion and evidentiary hearings, successfully litigated complex legal issues, and first-chaired dozens of jury trials. Previously, I was a staff attorney for Legal Action of Wisconsin as their Senior Law attorney.  As a Senior Law attorney I helped seniors in various capacities such as consumer fraud, nursing home abuse, Medicaid or tax issues.

Shelton's resume is here. Personal information, such as telephone numbers, personal email addresses, and the names of people not directly involved in the campaign have been redacted.​

https://www.sheltonforjudge.com/​​​

We asked State Supreme Court candidates Brian Hagedorn and Lisa Neubauer to respond to our questionnaire, but neither obliged.

Hagedorn was profiled as part of our "Walker's Judges" series – you can read that here. ​​​