Biography
Name: Chris Antcliff
Age: 44
Occupation: Judge, 448th Judicial District Court
Website: N/A
Residence: West Side
Relevant Experience: I am a former law clerk to Judge David Briones of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas. Following that, I opened a solo law practice where I handled a variety of civil and criminal cases in both the state and federal courts. I have handled civil rights cases, labor and employment cases, school district cases, First and Fourth Amendment cases, and many other types of cases. I brought cases on behalf of plaintiffs and I have also defended them. I have been involved in complex civil and business litigation. I served on the State Bar of TexasÕ Grievance Committee for 6 years. I served on the State BarÕs Judicial Relations Committee for three years. I have argued before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the Eighth Court of Appeals in El Paso. In summary, my career to date has prepared me very well for this bench.
1. What is the most important issue facing the court?
Building a docket. The 448th District Court is a brand new court that became effective as of September 1, 2007 by act of the State legislature. It was created to handle the burgeoning number of civil cases in El Paso County as well as the influx of cases that will arise as a result of the growth at Fort Bliss. Recently, I approached a number of my colleagues and requested that they transfer a substantial number of cases to this Court. In addition, the Presiding Administrative Judge has entered an Order directing the District Clerk to assign a significant number of new filings to this Court. The 448th, although statutorily a general jurisdiction court, by agreement of the Council of Judges, will only handle civil cases.
2. Is the local system of oversight sufficient to protect the public from unfair judges? If so, why, and if not, how would you change it?
The premise of the question assumes that there is a local system of oversight. I am not aware of any such local system (other than potentially an appeal to the Eighth Court of Appeals). If a member of the public has a concern with a judge, they may contact the State Commission on Judicial Conduct in Austin and make a complaint. In my experience, this system of oversight does work quite well.
3. What experience do you have with the law that will make you a good judge?
As noted above, I was an attorney in the private practice of law for just over 10 years following a clerkship in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas. My practice was very diverse – as a result my experience is very broad. I am licensed to practice law in the State of Texas, the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the United States Supreme Court. I have tried and settled many cases, and I have observed both good and bad judges. In my opinion, my experience, my qualifications and my temperment will all help me to be a good judge.
4. How do District Courts differ from County Courts?
In criminal cases, County Courts only handle misdemeanors and District Courts handle felonies. In the civil realm, the jurisdictions of County and District Courts over the years has essentially become concurrent. This was done so that the workload could be shared between the various courts given the rise in the number of civil cases over the last generation.
5. What is your position on the trend at the state level to either consolidate the county and district courts or to allow them to hear similar cases?
I am not aware of a trend at the state level to consolidate the County and District Courts, although certainly, there has been a trend to make their civil jurisdictions concurrent. Given the volume of civil cases in large cities and counties in Texas, I do not see a problem in concurrent jurisdiction in the County and District Courts. The only caveat would be that I also think that the qualifications to become either a County Court or a District Court Judge ought to also be the same.
6. In El Paso, it seems like lawyers and judges know each other, something perhaps similar to most communities. What are some of the situations under which you think a judge ought to recuse themselves? Are the rules clear enough and if not, how would you change them?
As a sitting Judge, I am not permitted to issue advisory opinions or anticipated rulings. I would only say in response to this question that there are laws and rules governing motions to recuse a judge and in the event that I was presented with a motion to recuse, I would follow all of the applicable laws and rules governing same.
7. Is there fair access to justice for everyone? How would you improve access; specifically, how would you support public defenders?
I definitely believe that there is fair access to justice of everyone in El Paso County and that a big part of that access starts with a fair an impartial judge. As a long-time member of the El Paso Bar Association, I am aware that they continue to support fair access to justice for every person regardless of their race, creed, sex, national origin, gender, income level and any other potentially discriminatory factor. As an attorney in private practice, I often worked with public defenders in both the state and local courts. They perform an outstanding service to the community and do an excellent job.