Two women are vying in Central Kentucky for a seat on the state Supreme Court after the chief justice chose not to seek another term.
The candidates are Pamela Goodwine, deputy chief Kentucky Court of Appeals judge, and Erin Izzo, a partner at Lexington law firm Landrum and Shouse. While judicial elections are nonpartisan in Kentucky, political partisans are lining up on opposite sides of this race.
Last year, Chief Justice Laurance VanMeter announced he would not be seeking reelection in the 5th Supreme Court district, which includes Bourbon, Clark, Fayette, Franklin, Jessamine, Madison, Scott and Woodford counties. He will be succeeded as chief justice in January by Deputy Chief Justice Debra Hembree Lambert, who was chosen Monday by her colleagues.
Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear is backing Goodwine, saying she would be “a really great Supreme Court justice.” According to campaign finance reports, Goodwine’s donors also include former Democratic Govs. Steve Beshear and Paul Patton, as well as Democratic state lawmakers. A political organization created this week and organized by the current governor’s top campaign adviser is supporting Goodwine.
Meanwhile, Izzo has received GOP support — an endorsement from the Clark County Republican Party and donations from local Republican groups in Fayette and Madison counties.
Goodwine told the Kentucky Lantern that “it is critical for impartiality to be demonstrated and upheld in the role of judge and justice.” Judges have a role to fairly interpret the law while also maintaining ethics and integrity, she added.
“I have been a registered independent since I became a judge and I am known for continually displaying a strong work ethic along with honesty and integrity to ensure justice for all,” Goodwine said. “My strong reputation for upholding these values along with my 25 years of dedicated service as a judge has earned me respect from all parties. I have staunch supporters from all parties and welcome and accept invitations from all parties to participate in their events.”
Izzo said she too has attempted to go before a mix of groups that lean left and right or are neutral. She added it “would be dangerous for Kentucky” to open up judicial races to more partisanship in the future.
“I think as a candidate, there’s not much I can do with my supporters in terms of who’s going to give endorsements and who’s not,” Izzo said. “It doesn’t surprise me, honestly, that Beshear came out and endorsed her given her political leanings. And it doesn’t surprise me that the Clark County Republicans came out and endorsed me because of their political leanings.”
Because of ethics guidelines, Kentucky judicial candidates must avoid indicating their decision in a particular case. Both Goodwine and Izzo discussed their legal philosophies and qualifications with the Kentucky Lantern.
Justices serve eight-year terms. Both candidates said they intend to serve their full term on the court if elected.
Goodwine promises ‘dedication to the rule of law and justice for all’
Goodwine said that her 25 years of judicial experience have “given me the vast array of experiences and responsibilities needed to best serve all Kentuckians on the Kentucky Supreme Court.” Goodwine was elected to the Kentucky Court of Appeals for the 5th Appellate District in 2018. Before that she served on the benches of Fayette County Circuit and District courts.
Being part of the state appeals court prepared Goodwine to join the Supreme Court, she said in written responses to the Kentucky Lantern, as she interpreted complex legal issues and crafted opinions while managing a high caseload.
“Upon election to the Kentucky Supreme Court, I will be the first woman and only the fifth person in history to serve at all levels of the judiciary in Kentucky,” Goodwine said. “And I pledge to bring to our state’s highest court not only the legal expertise, work ethic, preparedness and passion for the law that I have built my reputation as a judge, but also a commitment to approaching each case with a dedication to the rule of law and justice for all.”
After moving to Lexington from her hometown of Youngstown, Ohio, in 1979, Goodwine began working as a court reporter before attending the University of Kentucky the following year. She graduated from the University of Kentucky in 1991 and UK College of Law in 1994. Early in life, Goodwine overcame challenges like the deaths of her parents by the age of 19 and and a life-threatening illness. She said those moments taught her to use “challenges as a springboard to grow and thrive” and accomplish her goals.
Goodwine, 64, said she knew she wanted to be a judge as a teenager and that was later reaffirmed after her mother’s murder.
“From the courtroom to community outreach, I’ve witnessed the real impact legal decisions have on people’s lives and that fuels my commitment to serving on the Kentucky Supreme Court,” Goodwine said.
Goodwine said the Kentucky Supreme Court is “the ultimate interpreter of the Constitution, laws and rulings,” and handles lower court appeals and focuses typically on cases with “significant legal or constitutional decisions” and renders rulings with binding legal precedents.
As an arbitrator, Izzo says, she does ‘a lot of the same things that judges do’
Izzo said her litigation experience across Kentucky makes her qualified for the state’s highest court. For 19 years, she’s worked on litigation, arbitration and mediations. She compared arbitration to working as a judge and said her philosophy is to interpret the law as it is written.
“As an arbitrator, we do a lot of the same things that judges do,” Izzo said. “We look at cases. We have attorneys come before us. I hear arguments. I make decisions. I hear evidence. I preside over trials. It’s there. It’s just different that it’s here in a conference room, as opposed to the courthouse.”
Izzo, 46, completed her undergraduate degree at Dartmouth in 2000 and graduated from the University of Kentucky College of Law in 2005. Before joining Landrum and Shouse in 2011, Izzo’s career experience includes being an attorney at Fulkerson, Kinkel and Marrs in Lexington, working as an assistant Fayette County attorney and being a judicial staff attorney for the Family Division of the 50th Judicial Circuit. Before law school, she worked as a paralegal at New York City firm Seward and Kissel.
Describing herself as a “constitutionalist” and not “an activist arbitrator” when it comes to applying law, Izzo said she looks at the intent behind how laws were written. She added that “if there’s something there that might be better socially, or might (be) something that I disagree with, it’s not my place to change.”
“I look at how things are, what the intention of the founding fathers were with our Constitution, and that kind of carries over to what legislative intent was when a law was adopted,” Izzo said. “Because I think if you really want to understand what the legislature intended with the law, you want to know how things were when it was adopted, what was in effect, what was going on at the time, and so that can have an impact on what a statute means outside of the Constitution.”
Izzo was born in Tennessee and raised in a Portland, Oregon, suburb until the age of 7, when her family moved to Louisville.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5. In-person no-excuse early voting begins Thursday, Oct. 31.
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Written by McKenna Horsley. Cross-posted from the Kentucky Lantern.
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