001[Music] hello and welcome to the Views expressed of public affairs program on W TV here in Ash Massachusetts tonight we have a special guest in our ongoing series for candidates for Governor's Council we have David reservitz I hope I got your name correct uh sir oh fantastic hi well welcome to the Views expressed um this is oh you're very welcome uh so I'm just gonna jump right into it uh first of first off who are you tell us a little bit about your personal background sure um I'm a lawyer been a a trial attorney for about 28 years now uh originally from Brockton Massachusetts I went to high school in Easton Massachusetts um which is the town next door still in this District to of the governor's Council it's a huge District of 37 towns
002I currently live uh in NM which is the kind of top right corner is of the district along with Milton in that area goes all the way out to Framingham and Ashland it's a big District yeah so I'm a lawyer I'm a father I've got uh four kids um and uh I've been active in the legal community and the judicial selection process in the past and it's something that I'm really passionate about Mr reservist now we had know a little bit about you and we'll be digging into your professional background probably a little bit more in depth as we uh go along um before we get too into discussion I was wondering if you could help out our viewers a lot of folks don't even know well I should don't even it's kind of esoteric
003even for those who are well-informed voters a lot of folks don't know what Governor's council is if you could let us know what it is and let us know why why you're running yeah it's something that needs to change a little bit the governor's council is an interesting body of government um it's a some it at times has been controversial but it's a very important body of government it is a board that consists of eight elected individuals Statewide each district I'm running for district two which includes ashin it's an open seat each district comprises of a combination of five senatorial districts so they're huge districts and if you do the math there are 40 Senators there are eight districts combination of five so the math kind of checks out there um the governor's Council is
004now in charge largely of vetting and casting the final votes on judicial appointments lawyers that are seeking to become judges it also handles these types of vetting and votes for other important jobs like clerk magistrates board of appeals uh parole board uh officers and candidates and uh clerk magistrates and the other major function although less frequent of the governor's council is if the governor wants to issue a pardon or commutation or shortening of a prison sentence or jail sentence that must be either approved or denied by the governor's Council as well so why are you running for governor Council uh like I mentioned before uh I'm a lawyer and more so than even being a lawyer I'm a former judicial nominating commissioner uh which uh means I have selected judges in the past um another
005thing that a lot of people don't know about is how do you become a judge in Massachusetts other states actually elect their judges certainly in the southern states you'll see judges and their supporters standing outside reelect judge Smith Massachusetts doesn't do that they take a more uh technical approach as Massachusetts and other Northeastern states and many other uh Western States like C California they they will appoint their judges through other legal professionals they leave it to the lawyers and the elected officials on the governor's Council um so in doing so there is essentially two boards the first board is called the judicial nominating Commission Now that board is appointed and selected by the sitting governor for example I was appointed by governor dval Patrick I'm a Democrat uh was a big fan of uh Governor
006dval Patrick's Administration I had previously been the president of my bar association and a public defender and um that caught the ear of then Governor Deval Patrick and he appointed me to his judicial nominating commission that's the first stop that lawyers make in their journey to become a judge if they're successful they then move on to the governor's Council I loved the work I did on the jnc as they call it for all Patrick um when we served as Commissioners there there were about 21 uh lawyers from across the state um we appointed some of the best judges that are on the bench today and we appointed more minority LBGTQ judges uh female judges than any jnc before in any Administration since that's what I'm trying to get back to do M okay okay all
007right um so I it's interesting when we started the show you kind of uh you said well you know govern's Council it's like well that's going to change a little bit I I that's going to tea up my my next question yeah for a number of years now uh and it seems like every time we've got an election especially when we've got a Governor's Council open seat situation um there's a lot of discussion around you know the utility of the governor's Council you know some folks feel like it has outlived its usefulness it's um you know and we we can we can dig into this because it seems like the two approaches most widely seen in the United States are either something like this a governance Council situation or you get a situation where judges
008are elected I'm just curious as to and I don't it's not a binary choice but I'm just curious where you stand uh about the governor's Council and its current Incarnation and you know the utility of it and yeah it's a it's a great question and and I think it's really interesting to discuss it I mean I I can certainly see why some people feel it is outlived its uh objective and perhaps its purpose uh frankly it's outlived many other G uh governing uh boards entirely it it dates back to the 1600s the governor's Council it is older than our Nations and our states constitutions so obviously it was enacted by the the Brits and I think it was done so to keep tabs on the governor that was installed by the British before we as
009a nation gained our freedom um and it's gone through a lot of changes over those centuries um most uh reducing its responsibilities but that doesn't mean that it is not necessary in fact I think it's extremely necessary and the main reason why is because I think it is a checkin balance so the jnc that I mentioned before that is an appointed board chosen by the governor so I'm a Democrat I was a supporter of dval Patrick every member of that J jnc that I was on was also a Democrat selected by Patrick So in theory the people of Massachusetts can elect whichever Governor's counselor they want Democrat Republican conservative liberal middle of the road um and they're going to represent them on the governor's Council and they may say you know I understand Governor that
010you want this candidate and you put this candidate to your J NC and your jnc approved this candidate but my constituents that's not a good fit for our community we're looking for someone that is a true represent representative of this district and so it serves as that final check and balance and why not have it it's just added protection to the citizens just a a follow-up question to that so you know you talk about the the uh the JC and the governor's Council and how they you know that that that the governor's council is a a check on that particular commit commission so do you still feel that the jnc is necessary um because it's also a great question I do I do and I'll tell you why all right because vetting judges should be
011a very thorough process we are appointing people to very powerful positions and they have a mandatory retirement at age 70 so governor Patrick for example happen to prefer younger judges if you appoint a judge at 40 years old you are stuck with that judge for 30 years you better choose a good one one that really serves the community and has the right knowledge the right experience the right compassion but the also the right understanding of when it's time to be strict um so I mean these judges as we know whether it be a criminal matter where they're affecting someone's Liberty something in the probate and family court affecting something as as as crucial as child custody and visitation a major civil case that could be over real estate that people own their largest asset or
012tens of thousands of dollars it could be a serious injury case in our Superior Courts or in our Board of industrial accidents could be a housing matter where someone's facing eviction either way they affect people's lives in such an impactful way that these judges will be ruling on issues like that day in and day out so the process should be extremely thorough extremely thoughtful and it's like we say put a second set of eyes on this so first you've got the jnc that is is not a quick process these candidates it's a Grassroots process they're brought up from their law practices and they are examined as potential judges if they so choose to be and then they come in for an interview and then if they pass through the first phase then they are put
013to what we call due diligence and then Commissioners are assigned to really investigate these attorneys to see if they're qualified and that means usually calling the people that aren't as obvious not the friends and family not the law Partners but the lawyers that were maybe on the other side of a case that they handled or judges on a case that maybe they didn't Prevail on um and you really get a good understanding it doesn't have to be a lawyer that wins all their cases it doesn't even have to be the best lawyer that makes the best judge it has to be someone that has the right temperament someone that has the right balance and then if successful they're to the governor's Council and that's where they get that check and balance interesting so so yeah
014I it's it's it's fascinating I I will keep my eye out on these different arguments because it seems like like I said every election cycle uh there seems to be like a little push back and it'll be fascinating to find out as the years progress like where where we land as a commonwealth uh with Governor's Council but right now the race is on and we are talking about your cidy so let's so let's loop back to to you um most folks who are running for Governor's Council feel very passionately about a lot of uh areas around Justice uh policy issues I'm just curious what are maybe the top two issues or concerns that you have that uh inspired you to jump into this race yeah thank you um we we all have our different platforms
015and priorities but we also have a lot in common I'm speaking of my Democratic uh opponents um because we're all Democrats um two of the uh Democratic opponents running against me uh who are great people uh take an approach to uh prison reform and social justice platform and they want to see changes in the U incarceration rates and I agree with that um and fortunately if you look at the data incarceration rates are moving in the right direction less so for minorities but they're still moving in the right direction thankfully and as a result we're experiencing the closure of a prison in norfol where uh they are putting migrants uh in on another controversial issue um I have a more um I think like a lawyer I've been a lawyer for more than half my
016life so my approach to the council is more broad than that yes I support Rehabilitation and diversion over incarceration on criminal matters I was a public defender and I've tried many criminal cases to verdict um but I've also switched my career to civil and so I'm also able to represent this district from day one on civil matters including financial matters Family Matters housing matters injury cases that can really affect people's lives um and I want to make sure that the judges that we pick are qualified to protect the people of the district so it's not necessarily one area because the judges have more than one area that they have to uh to that they have to handle um as far as political uh agendas go well like my opponents I'm a Democrat I don't want
017to vote for any judges that don't support a woman's right to choose I'm going to be Pro labor and I want to reach out to the labor unions and make sure that they feel accurately represented uh I want to make sure that we we have judges that are going to be tough on gun laws uh and uh sympathetic to drug addicts and tough on drug dealers um these are the things that I see as a attorney having practiced in the district and Superior Courts for so many years families come in sometimes begging judges for help because a family member has an addiction and they need to have them sectioned as they say for help um because addiction mental health issues can really rip apart a family and the judge needs to make the decision as
018to and it can be an of often difficult decision as to take away the liberty and freedom of someone who's affected by mental health or addiction uh so those are some of the issues that I'm really passionate about it's hard to believe getting back to the women's rights I mean I uh there are two men and two women in the Democratic race I'm a father of three daughters now all in their 20s um and I'm a lawyer and I'm a man of the law and I never thought that we would be seeing in 2024 states banning abortion and actually having the discussion of a nationwide ban on abortion with the Hobs case overturning roie Wade we want to make sure that Massachusetts doesn't fall into that trap we want to make sure that Massachusetts stays
019smarter and more modern than the rest of this country with the protection of those crucial rights and freedoms well you have run through a number of issues that you asked for two and you gave me a lot which is which is great but um you know I actually like to find out a little bit more about um but you so you how you've come to some of these these conclusions and and usually when I do that I ask folks specifically around about their backgrounds I'm just curious what prompted you to to get into law why why are you why are you in the law now yeah inspired you around that I'm not sure I remember Makita I've been a lawyer for uh almost 30 years I I just remember always wanting to be a lawyer
020the truth is my father was a lawyer uh my dad was a lawyer for 40 years my great uncle was a lawyer um we all come from the city of Brockton which has been a very busy exciting place to practice law uh my great uncle hung a shingle as an attorney uh in that City in 193 7 my father hung a shingle in 1967 and I hung a shingle in 1997 um I've just always loved the idea that I can stand up make Arguments for people and really make a difference and it's exciting and when you're a young lawyer and I remember being a young lawyer in the 90s and carrying just a a huge pile of files um as a public defender and spending the entire day in a busy District Court making bar
021Arguments for the release of usually Indigent uh defendants um the day would go so fast it's just thrilling you know I I was goingon to ask you why so we we know why you started but what kept you in it like it sounds like it was exciting but you have to you practiced different kinds of law you pract you were public defender uh and then you mentioned you you started practicing civil law I don't know if there are any other uh any other uh kinds of law that you practice in between there but what kept me in it well a lot of things a morgage a mortgage kept me in that's an honest answer it's a very honest answer um if you're successful as an attorney you can make a good living and I don't
022want to um hide that um because I think in politics sometimes that is used as a negative and I've never quite understood that um if you represent a client and you do a good job and then you do it over and over and over again and you learn and you become a great lawyer and you get to know the judges and know how to read the judges and then you you continue to have success um not only does it make someone an excellent candidate for the Governor's Council but it makes them a successful attorney um so I've had success in my law practice um I've also changed the practice of law with the uh e omics it's good like anything it's good to diversify I can handle real estate I handle housing and civil matters
023and I handle criminal matters you know it's it's fascinating going back to what you were talking about a little bit earlier talking about like you know what makes a good judge uh you know I think you had mentioned and and I apologize if I'm putting words in your mouth but you know the best lawyers don't always make the best judges and you talked about so um you also talked about a temperament uh and so what do you mean by the right temperament but I also want to talk about like core competencies from a technical standpoint too what you would be looking for in in in your judges so if you could expand on that a little bit yeah sure I'd be happy to It's a combination of a few very important things so I think
024uh the first place to start is with the core competencies a lawyer that is seriously considered to become a judge usually has at least 10 years of solid legal experience ideally a little bit more um but you don't want to appoint a 60-year-old attorney to spend 10 years on the bench and then be filling that seat again so typically 10 between say 15 and 25 years experience is ideal that's a lot of experience but within that experience we uh we jnc Commissioners and Governor's counil ideally like to see lawyers that have diverse experience or as lawyers say um lawyers that have represented parties on both sides of the v as they say so a typical case is Smith versus Jones and Smith is the plaintiff and Jones is the defendant and when we are asking
025lawyers about their experience if they're going to oversee a courtroom with plaintiffs and defendants we want to know have you represented plaintiffs and defendants there's a lot of candidates that might come uh before the jnc or the governor's councel that have spent 30 years as an insurance defense attorney handling just specific insurance defense issues it doesn't mean they're not going to be qualified judges but it does mean that they're not going to have the benefit of the experience of representing an individual in a civil case or an individual defendant in a criminal case um solo practitioning attorneys small general practice lawyers often make great judges because they might handle a probate family law matter a divorce case a child custody case and then the next day they might find themselves doing a criminal arraignment and
026then perhaps there's an automobile accident where a client breaks a leg or and and the insurance company doesn't want to settle a case and they got to try a civil case they might end up they might find themselves in the board of industrial accidents fighting for an employer employees rights or an employment discrimination case um any types of those matters can come before a judge restraining orders simple things like that so it's great to dig into the attorney's practice through the attorney and through other individuals who have come to know that attorney professionally to learn about their actual knowledge and experience and then you have to look at their personality and their temp temperment talk about that temperament you know so it's an overused word because it's so important okay so Define define what what
027do you mean by ideal temperament for this for for that position what what do you mean what do you mean when you say that litigation is an adversarial process it can be very heated sometimes the lawyers don't even behave I hate to say it it's the judge's job to keep Order in the Court to essentially be the referee or the Umpire to decide what's in evidence what's not in evidence and how a dispute is going to be resolved between the attorneys and sometimes between the parties if there's no jury um so it takes a special temperament to do so a good judge as we know is unbiased right they do not attach themselves or their opinions they simply review the evidence and apply the law and in doing so it is best to see a
028judge apply it with an even keeled temperament so when I say some of the best attorneys don't make the best judges here's what I mean as a trial lawyer I know who the great trial lawyers are and some of the best trial lawyers in our state are real showboaters they are dramatic they are incredible orators they are incredible uh they they have incredible oral argument they have uh a real fight in them and those are great trial attorneys to hire if you've got a major case on the line but they don't necessarily translate those skills to applying the law From the Bench so that's where the temperament comes in um and there just also Community attachment you don't you might get a lawyer that you know moved here from another state and has had a
029lot of success in their careers but they don't really know the community and when you're sitting on the bench and people from the community coming before you it's good to have some um way to relate to them and to really understand what's going on in people's lives that are coming before you that that's that's a very difficult Comin combination uh impartiality uh the ability to take control of a situation and basically be you know a combination of a referee you um you know keeping keeping Order in the Court as you said but also um and applying the law um you know W without without bias uh there's a lot going on in the courtroom and a lot of things that a judge has to do in order to make it run successfully and fairly and
030evenly it sounds like so thank you for yeah go ahead go ahead that's why the judicial appointment process is so important we have over 400 judges protecting the people of this Commonwealth and for the most part they do just what you said they they balance those skills and they do an excellent job well I we don't have too much more time there's one quick question that I'll ask I'll I ask you to answer it relatively succinctly and then we'll get into uh your closing arguments as to why uh you are you should be elected to Governor's Council really quickly going back to the utility of Governor's Council um you know we talk about we talked about the uh the the jnc but a lot of folks also say that the governor's Council tends to be
031a rubber stamp for the governor uh so it does not actually act as a check or balance it's what what are your what what how would you respond to that and how would you ensure if you were elected that that would not occur yeah well I'll make a promise that I'm not going to be a rubber standand uh I'll make a promise that I have more experience uh than most uh certainly than the candidates running against me but uh with all due respect I have more experience than most candidates running for Governor's Council Statewide I know how to vet a judge and I don't want to see any bad appointments going to the courtrooms in this District whether it be the Framingham District Court Ram uh Brockton attelboro uh and all the other court smaller
032cour houses that we have in our district or anywhere in the state um the other thing I would say is that while there are overwhelmingly more affirmations of of judicial appointments there are some judges and other professional appointees that are not uh successful in getting through the governor's Council uh but one thing I'll say in defense of the high rate of affirmations is that that is the jnc doing their job so if the jnc really does a thorough job they're not going to let non-qualified candidates through and we're gonna we're going to stop it there and just Mr reserv why should people vote for you on September 3rd in the primary thank you um I'm passionate about this uh and I'm experienced um and I want to protect the people of this uh District by
033making sure that the judges that we have are fair that they're compassionate uh that they will understand what's going on in the uh lives of the human beings that come before them and I know how to do it I've done it before I have almost 30 years experience and I'm the uh within the legal field but I've also been appointed and elevated within the field I was the president of the bar association and was appointed by Governor Deval Patrick to the jnc my qualifications uh significantly exceed anyone else running against me and I'm ready to start on day one and we're going to have have to leave it at that Mr reservitz Dave reservitz is running for uh Governor's Council District to Mr reservitz uh how can people get in touch with the campaign I
034want to be available every way there is so I hand out my cell phone number 508 942 6902 I have a website www. vote4 F dave. net and I have uh email as well uh it's uh Dave uh at vote for the number for dave.com I'm sorry at gmail.com gmail.com okay well thank you very much again for joining us Mr reservat and thank you uh Ashland and other folks who are tuning in uh for uh hanging out with us uh here at the views expressed uh once again uh doing it uh an episode around Governor's Council uh and we're just hoping that the folks in ashin and other districts uh find these interviews helpful and help you make an educated choice about who our next Governor's counselor will be thanks again for for visiting us
035and thank you for watching the views Express on waca TV