LA judge publicly admonished for having clerk do his work

Judge Ernest M. Hiroshige of the Los Angeles County Superior Court was publicly admonished Wednesday by the Commission on Judicial Performance for delegating his responsibility to conduct case management conferences to his court clerk.

The clerk, who seemed unaware of the admonishment when called Wednesday, declined to comment, except to say Hiroshige was on vacation.

According to the commission, Hiroshige, who has been on the bench since 1982 and has an unlimited civil calendar at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles, allowed his clerk to conduct case scheduling with counsels and parties outside of his presence.

The commission, composed of six public members, three judges and two lawyers, called Hiroshige's misconduct, "at a minimum, improper action and dereliction of duty."

After Hiroshige received a private admonishment from the commission in 2010 for similar misconduct, the judge posted a notice in his courtroom announcing: "The clerk will meet & confer with counsel/parties and attempt to schedule dates in court that are agreeable to all parties, and that if there is any disagreement with the proposed dates and other entries on the proposed case management order, please request to discuss the issue with the court."

Gregory Dresser, the commission's director-chief counsel, said Hiroshige's first private admonishment played a significant role in the commission's decision to issue a public admonishment.

"If it was the first discipline for this misconduct, it might have been a private admonishment," Dresser said. "Given it was similar misconduct for which Judge Hiroshige had been previously disciplined, in my view, it is appropriate he receive discipline for the misconduct occurring again."

In his response to the commission, Hiroshige explained that he posted the notice in his courtroom after telling counsel and parties he had "reviewed all case management conference statements submitted and indicated to the clerk the range of dates that should be scheduled in each case."

The commission said Hiroshige's conduct violated Canon 3B(1), which requires a judge to "hear and decide all matters assigned to the judge except those in which he or she is disqualified."

The admonishment references Riverside County Superior Court Judge Christopher Sheldon, who resigned in 2009 after the commission censured him for similar behavior.

The commission found Sheldon was working only a few hours a day, allowing his clerk to accept pleas and waivers of constitutional rights in misdemeanor matters, and jogging on the courthouse stairs during his court calendar, among other violations.

In both cases, the commission said the judges created the appearance that the clerk, rather than the judge, was running the courtroom.

According to the admonishment, Hiroshige argued his case was less serious than Sheldon's and a comparison should not have been made.

The commission responded, saying the Sheldon decision was cited only to illustrate that improper delegation of judicial responsibilities to the clerk constitutes misconduct and not as a comparison of the facts of the two matters.

"There was no intention for it to be an exact comparison," Dresser said. "However, Sheldon does stand for the proposition that it's misconduct for a judge to delegate judicial responsibilities to his or her clerk. Hiroshige did that here, so the use of the precedent is appropriate."

After the commission conducted an investigation into allegations of misconduct against Hiroshige, it sent him a notice of public admonishment.

After receiving the notice, Hiroshige had the option to accept the admonishment or demand an appearance before the commission. He also could have rejected the admonishment altogether and demanded a formal proceeding, where a special master would have conducted an evidentiary hearing.

In the end, Hiroshige accepted the admonishment, Dresser said.

Both Hiroshige and his attorney, Edith Rae Matthai of Robie & Matthai, were contacted but unavailable for comment.