Hise And Fiddler Discuss Superior Court Judge Position
By LYDIA BERGLAR
News Editor
Melissa Hise and Ann Fiddler are running for the position of superior court judge for the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit. The superior court is the general jurisdiction trial level court and handles appeals from lower courts (such as probate and magistrate).
As the state’s website (Georgia.gov) reads, “Superior Court Judges preside over cases involving misdemeanors, contract disputes, premises liability, and various other actions. In addition, the Superior Court has exclusive equity jurisdiction over all cases of divorce, title to land, and felonies involving jury trials, including death penalty cases.”
Q: Why is this role so important?
Melissa Hise: The role of a superior court is important because it is the entry level for much of the people’s business in the third branch of government—the judicial branch. The justice system is what maintains the balance of order and power in our country. It is the checks and balances for the other two branches. At the local level, the superior court is where most people come when involved in a legal dispute. The superior court judge is sometimes the decision maker in those cases if it is a non-jury matter, and sometimes the gatekeeper when a jury trial is needed. It is important that a superior court judge conducts herself with the understanding of the responsibility of maintaining a fair, impartial mindset so that the rule of law will be followed and the Constitution upheld and adhered to in ensuring that the people get their day in court.
Ann Fiddler: The magnitude of what is occurring in a courtroom at any given time can be overwhelming, no matter the role of the individuals in the room. The role of superior court judge is the unique position it holds in the constitutional structure in the State of Georgia. From probate or magistrate court appeals to property partition actions, from divorce to felony matters, the position of superior court judge is one for an individual with the ability to think critically, swiftly, and impartially. Decisions which are made by a superior court judge can be life changing in many ways. It is vital that voters choose the candidate for superior court judge that has experience in the superior courts, confidence from the legal community, and the ability to perform the job impartially, fairly, and effectively to better serve our community as a whole.
Q: Why do you want to be elected?
Melissa Hise: I want to be elected because I believe that my 30 years of experience and the type of experience that I have is what we need on the bench now. I have worked with some of the best lawyers and judges in the state and believe what I have learned from working closely with them will enable me to provide a level of professionalism that is needed in our courts. I believe the people are jaded about how our court system works and there is a real sense that the system is not transparent in how the law is applied. I will be transparent, and I will listen to their cases in their entirety without bias, influence, or a pre-disposed mind.
Ann Fiddler: At 42 years old, I am at an age and time in my life where I feel called to leave the profession as an attorney and serve from the bench in a way where I may guide lives that need to be redirected, make decisions regarding justice when it must be served, and to provide assistance to those in their time of need. With almost 16 years of full-time practice of law in the superior courts in a variety of cases, I have the experience necessary to serve. With the endorsement of District Attorney Clayton M. Fuller and Catoosa County Solicitor General Doug Woodruff, I have the confidence of my peers that I am prepared and ready to be the next superior court judge. With my leadership skills as the president of the Lookout Mountain Bar Association and as a board member for Partnership for Families, Children, and Adults, I would be honored to join the three other superior court judges to comprise a unified team working together for our circuit. With my passion for pro bono representation, I have the heart to hear all cases from all people with fairness and impartiality. My hope is that I will not only serve one term, but many more to come just as those judges in our circuit did before me at this moment in time when our circuit is moving towards an ever-changing and ever-growing future. The Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit has a desire for long term efficiency, consistency, and dedication to serving our four-county circuit.
Melissa Hise’s Experience
From Hise’s website: “Only experience and respect for the parties, the process, the law and the Constitution can reach a fair and impartial outcome. I have experience in representing parties from all walks of life in virtually every type of action; judicial experience in listening to disputes and ruling fairly and impartially; and, experience in providing mediation and guardian ad litem services that enable the process to move more quickly and more thoroughly through the system.”
Q: Ann, you mentioned pro bono work at the New Home Meet and Greet. Could you elaborate and explain how that would impact your work as a superior court judge?
Ann Fiddler: “Pro bono” in Latin means “for the public good.” Service to the community can come in many forms depending on a person’s profession or stage in life, but for me in the last few years of my practice, I have served the legal community by representing a variety of individuals for free or a reduced fee, whether they are individuals referred from Georgia Legal Services Program, participants in our Drug Court and Mental Health Courts, or appointment by the Probate Courts in guardianship and conservatorship cases. I was awarded the Pro Bono Champion of the Year 2023 award for performing more free or reduced fee work than other lawyers in our region. Individuals who seek pro bono representation are often struggling with making ends meet, are in a rehabilitation program, or are undergoing other life circumstances which make them unable to afford or obtain an attorney on their own.
The oath of a superior court judge embodies service to the community in that everyone—no matter how much money a person has or where a person comes from—has the right to have their case heard fully and without bias before the court. The oath states: “I swear that I will administer justice without respect to person and do equal rights to the poor and the rich and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent on me as judge of the superior courts of this state, according to the best of my ability and understanding, and agreeably to the laws and Constitution of this state and the Constitution of the United States. So help me God.”
Pro bono work does not mean that my client is always on the winning side of the case, but it does
mean that I will diligently perform my duties as an attorney regardless of whether I am paid zero dollars or a thousand dollars. If elected, my pro bono work would reflect in how I proceed as a superior court judge—impartial, with fairness to everyone, and an understanding that everyone has the right to be heard and treated with respect and dignity, no matter their circumstance. I will also encourage our local attorneys to participate in pro bono work as I have done as Bar Association President.
Hise Addresses Integrity, Patience, and Impartiality
From Hise’s website: “I strive to treat everyone with respect whether as a client, an opposing party, litigant before me or parties seeking assistance in getting a successful resolution to their case. It is important to me that I understand a person’s perspective and outcome needs in their case. I do my best to hear a person’s side of the story.
“Knowing someone’s perspective and story enables me to apply the facts as presented to the law. You must do this as the rule of law requires litigants to have the law applied to their unique facts for the proper outcome each and every time, fairly and impartially.”
Hise added: The judicial canons require a judge to avoid impropriety and promote confidence in the judiciary. I think that it is important that a judge conducts herself in a professional manner understanding the gravity of the job before her and avoids relationships that could be seen as undermining the credibility of the decisions made from the bench. The conduct of a judge should not undermine the public’s confidence in the system. I will strive daily to maintain the public’s confidence in the court system and me as a superior court judge.
Fiddler Addresses Integrity, Patience, and Impartiality
From Fiddler’s website: “As a judge, order must be maintained, bias must not be present, and courtesy must be afforded – even in matters where unimaginable crimes have been committed. Having patience, kindness, or even humility likewise does not mean that as a judge, I would not be able to carry out a variety of duties such as sentencing an individual appropriate for crimes, finding an individual in contempt to which incarceration must ensue, or determining that a parent shall not have any contact with their child.
“On the other hand, my view of the judiciary is that we should be able to carry out each task set before us in such a way that we may proudly represent the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit as one which is professional and efficient no matter the case before us – without bias or prejudice, with patience and courtesy, and promptly and efficiently.”
Hise Addresses Efficiency
From Hise’s website: “Litigation is often very long and protracted. It is always a fine line between moving cases through the system quickly and making sure everyone is heard and all facts are known. Our present system in the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit is in need of improvement in how we value litigants’ time in scheduling cases and hearing them. Working with the various entities involved in the court system, we can make our system less burdensome to those who come to the courts seeking justice.”
Hise added, I know that there are ideas and processes being discussed now among the judges presently on the bench. I am most willing to try any method for streamlining the court system for the litigants’ benefit. I trust that our present judges are taking steps to determine what is best for our superior courts to move us into a more efficient and cost-effective case handling system.
In my time at Four Points, Inc., I have worked to collaborate with colleagues. While at Four Points, Inc., we received federal grant money that required the signature of 57 different agency heads on a memorandum of understanding. Through my work and collaboration, I received those signatures for many years. Those agencies included law enforcement, health care, education, judges, and other non-profit agencies in all four counties in our circuit. I am ready to collaborate with the three other judges on the bench as well as the lawyers, the clerks, law enforcement, the district attorney, the public defender, and others within our system.
Q: Ann, online, you mention efficiency several times. Care to elaborate or agree with or counter Hise’s statement above?
Ann Fiddler: The position of superior court judge is not performed in a vacuum. We have four judges in the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit who must work together with one another to effectively manage all cases across four counties. It is vital that our four judges be able to effectively communicate with one another regarding the decisions going forward in the circuit. My suggestions for efficiency are looking forward to ways to improve upon the systems that we already have in place.
First, from the perspective of my position: If elected, my office will be located in the beautiful Chattooga County Courthouse in Summerville, Georgia. We are fortunate to have one judge in each courthouse in our circuit. I intend to be present in my office, when not serving in other counties, under the direction of the chief judge, and hold regular office hours to be available to those in the community from the district attorney’s office, public defender’s office, sheriff’s, or general public. When I hold court, I intend to call cases in a way which allows those which may be disposed of quickly and easily first (if known) so that those individuals who are missing work or having to arrange childcare would not have their day hindered by a court appearance.
Looking at the circuit as a whole, we are in the era of electronic filing where it is easier than ever for attorneys from all across the state and beyond to file cases in our circuit.
One way that I look forward to working with the other judges on the bench in January 2024 is with regard to our court calendar set by the chief judge, especially for civil matters. For the most part, our superior courts utilize a “self-serve” sign up on a paper list for general civil court days. The first one to show up at the courthouse is often the first one to sign him/herself up on the court hearing list. However, for individuals who represent themselves or even attorneys from our neighboring counties in Tennessee or Georgia, the logistics of this may be confusing and even frustrating. It is my hope to utilize our electronic filing systems that we already have in place to have court schedules available for lawyers and individuals alike without preference to those who are first in the door as well as offer a variety of scheduling options with transparency as to who will be on the bench each day.
Our circuit does not have cases assigned to a specific judge which means that Judge X may hear your case one time, and Judge Y another. Having a case assigned, in some form, to a specific judge can lead to consistency in decisions as well as familiarity with the case which allows a hearing to be more efficient in timing. I have reviewed local rules on assignment of cases (from flexible to rigid options) in at least six circuits across our state and if elected, I look forward to presenting different options to the other judges to determine if our circuit would benefit.
Our circuit also does not have a list of “local rules” aside from several permanent court orders for matters such as mediation and cellphone usage. I hope to bring a new perspective on how we may become more efficient with an adopted set of local rules which will be available to the public.
