James Lawrence Sanchez
District Court Judge
13th Judicial District --
Cibola, Sandoval, and Valencia Counties
Year: 2014
Evaluation: Judge James Sanchez received positive ratings from all the survey groups. Attorneys rated him quite positively for being punctual in commencing proceedings, being courteous to all participants, and maintaining proper control over proceedings. Judge Sanchez received high scores from the court staff for respecting all court employees regardless of position and for behaving in a manner that encourages respect for the courts. Judge Sanchez also received high ratings from resource staff (e.g., law enforcement, probation and parole officers, interpreters, etc.) in many areas, including treating all participants equally and being punctual in commencing proceedings.
Experience & Education: Judge Sanchez was appointed District Judge in May 2012 and elected the following November. During his time on the bench, he has primarily acted as a family court judge. Recently, he began a new docket hearing civil and criminal cases. Prior to his appointment, he worked in private practice as a trial lawyer for 19 years and as a defense attorney for six years. Judge Sanchez received his undergraduate degree from New Mexico State University and law degree from the University of New Mexico in 1986.
PERCENTAGE THAT AGREE OR DISAGREE THAT THE JUDGE EXHIBITS POSITIVE QUALITIES IN EACH CATEGORY *
| Attorneys (n=85, 36% Response Rate) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Agree | Partly Agree/ Partly Disagree | Disagree |
| Exhibits Integrity | 84% | 12% | 4% |
| Fair and Impartial | 83% | 11% | 6% |
| Knowledgeable of Law | 78% | 12% | 10% |
| Communication is Clear | 80% | 15% | 5% |
| Appropriate Demeanor | 86% | 8% | 6% |
| Properly Controls Proceedings | 91% | 5% | 4% |
| Respects Court Employees | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Court Staff (n=48, 65% Response Rate) | |||
| Category | Agree | Partly Agree/ Partly Disagree | Disagree |
| Exhibits Integrity | 97% | 0% | 3% |
| Fair and Impartial | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Knowledgeable of Law | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Communication is Clear | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Appropriate Demeanor | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Properly Controls Proceedings | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Respects Court Employees | 94% | 3% | 3% |
| Category | Agree | Partly Agree/ Partly Disagree | Disagree |
| Exhibits Integrity | 96% | 4% | 0% |
| Fair and Impartial | 96% | 4% | 0% |
| Knowledgeable of Law | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Communication is Clear | 92% | 8% | 0% |
| Appropriate Demeanor | 96% | 4% | 0% |
| Properly Controls Proceedings | 92% | 8% | 0% |
| Respects Court Employees | N/A | N/A | N/A |
* On the tables above, the "Agree" columns are comprised of the strongly agree and agree responses. Similarly, the "Disagree" columns are comprised of the strongly disagree and disagree responses. The combined percentage of "Agree", "Disagree", and "Partly Agree/Partly Disagree" for each category may not equal 100% due to rounding error. "N/A" indicates that the category is "not applicable" because some populations were not asked certain questions.
PERCENTAGE THAT RECOMMEND THE JUDGE BE RETAINED OR NOT BE RETAINED IN OFFICE. ‡
‡ On the charts above, the "Retain" columns are comprised of the strongly recommend retain and somewhat recommend retain responses. Similarly, the "Do Not Retain" columns are comprised of the strongly recommend not retain and somewhat recommend not retain responses.