Apr 13, 2021 2 min read

In its efforts to inform its members and the public about the qualifications of candidates for judge and magisterial district judge, the Washington County Bar Association is posting self-reported information from candidates to its website.

Each candidate was asked to respond to a questionnaire developed by the bar association’s court relations committee. Responses are posted as received at www.washcobar.org/news. Two candidates have filed for the position of judge of the Washington County Court of Common Pleas and 11 for magisterial district judge in four districts.

Gary Gilman, who was elected in 2012 and serves as a Washington County judge, has filed his intention to stand for retention, but that will not be on the primary ballot, only on the Nov. 2 election ballot.

The court relations committee will conduct interviews with the Common Pleas judicial candidates. If one candidate does not win both the Republican and Democratic ballots in the primary, the committee may choose to hold a public forum prior to the general election in November. The commitee will poll voting-eligible bar association members asking for a consideration of “highly recommended,” “recommended,” “not recommended,” or “not qualified” for each of the candidates for Common Pleas judge. The committee will count the ballots and release the results in early May.

A hard copy of the responses to the questionnaires can be requested by calling the office of the Washington County Bar Association at 724-225-6710.