Category Archives: Uncategorized

NMCA: District court can’t dismiss case under Rule 1-041(E)(1) if plaintiff is in compliance with a scheduling order

In a legal malpractice case, the defendant moved to dismiss with prejudice under Rule 1-041(E)(1) for failure to take significant action to advance the case. The district court denied the motion, and entered a scheduling order. The plaintiff complied with … Continue reading

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10th Circuit: Detention and search of car passenger was proper

In United States v. Gurule, the Tenth Circuit reversed a district court’s order suppressing a gun found in the defendant’s pocket, and statements from the defendant admitting that he was a felon who knowingly possessed the gun. The court rejected … Continue reading

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Governor appoints Judges Shannon Bacon and David Thomson to the NM Supreme Court

Last week, Governor Lujan Grisham appointed District Judges Shannon Bacon and David Thomson to fill the two vacant seats on the New Mexico Supreme Court. Judge Bacon is on the Second Judicial District Court in Albuquerque. According to this story … Continue reading

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I’m back!

I’m happy to announce that my law blog is back in business. I took the blog offline after being sworn in as a judge on the New Mexico Court of Appeals in October 2017. I campaigned to keep my seat, … Continue reading

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10th Cir. Chief Judge Tymkovich speaks on judicial independence at University of Chicago.

Recently, Tenth Circuit Chief Judge Timothy Tymkovich spoke at the University of Chicago Law School on “Judicial Independence From Jay to Roberts.” Here is a report on his talk. Hat tip to How Appealing.

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New Mexico’s own Judge Harris Hartz on Justice Gorsuch

In this article by Zoe Tillman of Buzzfeed, Tenth Circuit Judge Harris Hartz of New Mexico discusses Justice Neil Gorsuch and defends his record.

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Programming Note

I apologize that I haven’t posted anything here in over a month. Over the past few weeks I’ve been experiencing technical difficulties which have caused the blog to be down entirely from time to time, and which have prevented me … Continue reading

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Albuquerque Journal endorses Nakamura, French for NM appellate judgeships

The Albuquerque Journal has endorsed Justice Judith Nakamura for the New Mexico Supreme Court, and Judge Stephen French for the New Mexico Court of Appeals. Both Nakamura and French are the Republican candidates for those positions.

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Breaking: Gov. Martinez appoints Stephen French to NM Court of Appeals

I have it on good authority that Governor Martinez will appoint respected Albuquerque lawyer Stephen French to the New Mexico Court of Appeals to fill the vacancy created by Judge Cynthia Fry’s retirement. Congratulations to Judge French! UPDATE: KRQE has … Continue reading

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Failure to provide written jury instructions in Spanish did not doom conviction, says NM Court of Appeals

The New Mexico Constitution explicitly protects the right of non-English speakers to serve on juries. See N.M. Const., Article VII, Section 3. As a result, it is fairly common for speakers of Spanish, Navajo, and other languages to serve on juries with … Continue reading

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