Civil attorney running a second time for judge

By Kathryn Reed

Joe Hoffman isn’t letting the bitter, nasty campaign of 2012 stop him from running again for El Dorado County Superior Court judge.

The 44-year-old is running to replace Judge Daniel Proud, who is retiring. The contentious battle of 2012 was against incumbent Curt Stracener.

“I think this time will be different than last. It’s very difficult to unseat a sitting judge. I believe that was part of the challenge last time,” Hoffman told Lake Tahoe News. “We never put out a single piece of negative mail or other medium. I’m proud of that.”

Joe Hoffman

Many of the reasons remain as to why Hoffman wants to be a judge and believes he is who should be elected.

“My belief is we need people who have been practicing in the county with a broad-based legal background who want to be in that position,” Hoffman said.

Since graduating from law school in 1994 Hoffman has been a private attorney in El Dorado County. He opened his law firm in January 1995. His goal was to practice every type of law he could so he would always be learning.

He and his wife run the law practice together. For a while they narrowed their focus to family law, but have sinse broadened it again. Hoffman believes this has prepared him well to be a judge because he has a diverse background and is not afraid to learn new things.

“No doubt there will be a steep learning curve with criminal cases,” he said. “With my background and nature, I can learn a new area of law and become proficient in a short period of time.”

Hoffman has been a judge pro tem since 2001, which means he is assigned by the court to help resolve cases before they go to trial. The goals are the litigants resolve their issues and a trial is not needed. He does not get paid for this work.

One thing Hoffman wants to bring to the bench is a more effective way to run the courtroom. Complaints are fairly consistent that the local courthouses are backed up and improvement is needed.

“I think there is a more efficient way to run the courtrooms so you don’t waste time and therefore money,” Hoffman said.

He believes his years of managing his office in a fiscally prudent and time-sensitive manner will serve him well as a judge.