Judge Brook announces his resignation
Court of Appeals’ chief judge to join
private judging firm in Denver
By Ron
Browning
E-mail: rbrowning@ibj.com
After 25
years of public service in Indiana – including 16 as a judge – the Hon. Sanford
M. Brook, chief judge of the Indiana Court of Appeals, is not only leaving the
bench but is leaving the state he’s called home all of his life.
The South Bend native is leaving to join the
Judicial Arbiter Group (JAG) – a prestigious private judging firm in Denver – where he will be involved in mediation
and alternative dispute resolution. While an exact date has yet to be
determined, Judge Brook said his resignation likely will become effective in
mid-February.
“It’s a
tremendous opportunity for the future for our family,” he said. “It’s going
back into the private sector, which offers a variety of latitude.”
The decision
to move came after many deep discussions with his wife of six years, Jenny – a
partner at Krieg DeVault in Indianapolis. While the couple’s son and
daughter, ages 4 and 3, will have to adapt to the thin air of the Mile High City, Brook’s daughters who are 25 and 23
will remain Hoosiers.
He’ll also
leave behind his parents and countless friends and colleagues.
“It’s going
to be tremendously tough leaving the state,” Judge Brook said.
The chief
judge said he wasn’t seeking a new career, but the opportunity arose and he had
to take advantage. He’s known several members of JAG for years and was asked to
visit the firm and see if he liked it.
JAG is one
of the oldest, most successful private judicial services in the nation,
offering dispute-resolution programs to the legal and business communities. The
firm consists entirely of former state and federal trial court and appellate
judges.
“I was
intrigued by the way this firm operates, their prominence as judges, their
prominence nationally,” Brook said. “All those things were attractive.”
Jerry
Lockwood, corporate president and administrator for JAG, said the firm was
equally impressed with Brook.
“He’s
extremely friendly, very easy to talk to,” Lockwood said. “You have to be able
to relate to the participants in a mediation.”
In addition
to his communication skills, he said Judge Brook’s experience on the bench and
with the National Institute of Trial Advocates (NITA) gives him the tools to
succeed with JAG – which he said handles a large number of complex disputes.
“We think
Judge Brook has the ability to step right in and hit the ground running,”
Lockwood said.
Brook, who
earned his law degree from Indiana University in Bloomington in 1971, worked in private practice
and was deputy city attorney of South Bend and a deputy prosecutor for the St.
Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office before becoming a judge with the St. Joseph
Superior Court in 1987. He served as presiding judge of that court from 1995 to
1997.
He was
appointed to the Court of Appeals in October 1998 and was elected chief judge
of the intermediate level appellate court in 2002.
Judge Brook
said each time he moved to a new phase of his career, there were things he
missed about his previous position. When he became a trial judge, he missed
parts of being a trial attorney. When he became an appellate judge, he missed
some aspects of being a trial judge.
His work
with JAG, he said, will require skills he developed in all of his past
positions.
“I can
finally combine the three different aspects of my profession that I’ve
enjoyed,” Brook said.
He said he
is in a unique and fortunate position in that a great job came along while he
was already working in one. He’s not leaving his position with the Court of
Appeals as much as he is moving to a new position, he said.
“I love what
I’m doing,” Judge Brook said. “There’s nothing about this job that I don’t
like. I’m tremendously satisfied.”
Of course
that makes his leaving that much more bittersweet. He said he’ll miss the daily
contact with his staff, the other members of the court, and his countless
friends around the state.
As tough as
it is for Judge Brook to leave, it is equally tough for others to see him go.
His
colleague on the Court of Appeals, and predecessor as chief judge, the Hon.
John Sharpnack, has known Brook nearly 20 years. Sharpnack described him as
bright and hardworking.
“I’m sorry
to see him go,” Judge Sharpnack said. “He’s been a good public servant, and
we’ll miss him.”
Chief
Justice Randall T. Shepard of the Indiana Supreme Court said Brook’s gain is
the state’s loss.
“Judge Brook
has been a force for good in the Indiana legal system for more than a quarter
century, both as a lawyer and a judge,” he said. “We’ll be much diminished by
his departure.”
The chief
justice has known Brook for about 17 years and said one of the chief judge’s
secrets to success is his ability to make others feel comfortable and relaxed
while being serious about his work.
“He’s a
delightful combination of straight business and engaging personality,” Shepard
said. “It’s a mix few people are able to achieve.”
Replacing
Judge Brook on the Court of Appeals will be tough, but the process will begin
with the Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission soliciting candidates from Indiana’s Third District, which included the
northern third of the state. The names of three candidates then will be sent to
Gov. Joseph E. Kernan, who will make the final decision and appoint a
replacement.
Judge Brook
said he’s been overwhelmed by the number of phone calls, notes and e-mails from
well-wishers since he announced his impending resignation. That has underscored
just how much he’ll leave behind as he departs from the cornfields of Indiana for the Rocky Mountains.
“It is not
my intention to lose contact with Indiana,” Brook said. “I don’t want to break
my ties to the Indiana bench and bar. They’ve been too
meaningful to me.”·
