Kathleen Jansen

Kathleen Jansen
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Current Court Information:
Michigan Second District Court of Appeals
Title:	Judge
Position:	District 2
Service:
Active:	1989-2019
Past position:	16th Circuit Court Judge
Personal History
Bachelors:	Michigan State University
Law School:	University of Detroit Law School
Candidate 2012:
Candidate for:	Court of Appeals
State:	Michigan
Election information 2012:
Incumbent:	Yes
Election date:	11/6/2012
Election vote:	100%A

Kathleen Jansen is a judge on the Michigan Second District Court of Appeals. She was appointed to the Court in 1989 and her current term ends on January 1, 2019.

Education

Judge Jansen received her bachelor's degree from Michigan State University and earned her J.D. from the University of Detroit Law School.

Career

Before she was elected to the Court of Appeals, Judge Jansen served as a judge of the Macomb County Probate and Macomb Circuit courts, and she worked as an attorney in private practice.

2012 election

Jansen was re-elected after running unopposed in the general election on November 6, 2012.

See also: Michigan judicial elections, 2012

Notable cases

Court: nonprofit not a public agency; Jansen in dissent

On March 6, 2003, the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled in a 3-1 decision that the Michigan High School Athletic Association and public schools "'work in tandem' to achieve mutual benefits and that the association does not 'usurp the schools' money making capacity.'" The MHSAA severed its ties from the state in 1972 when it became a nonprofit organization, and because the association is not supported through a state or local authority, it is not considered a public agency. Because it is not considered a public agency, it therefore is not subject to the Freedom of Information Act. According to The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, in dissent, Judge Kathleen Jansen agreed with the trial court that the MHSAA is a public agency. "The schools allow the MHSAA to operate athletic events and to receive funding from the tickets that are sold at those events, making it clear that the funding exists through the school's authority," Jansen wrote.

Doctor can be charged with performing illegal abortion

Dr. Jose Gilberto Higuera performed a 28-week abortion in 1994 in violation of a Michigan law prohibiting abortion beyond the first trimester unless the mother's life is at risk. The Michigan Court of Appeals determined that the law was not unconstitutionally vague and that the state could prosecute the doctor. In dissent, Judge Kathleen Jansen reasoned that the statute was unconstitutionally vague because a doctor could not be expected to discern which abortions would be legal, and which would be illegal--essentially, that the doctor would not be able to determine how far along the woman was if the patient didn't tell the doctor. It is believed that the case against Higuera is the only time that a doctor has been held legally responsible for an illegal abortion since Roe v. Wade.

See also

• Michigan Court of Appeals
• Judicial selection in Michigan

External links

• Court of Appeals: Kathleen Jansen
• Macomb County Bar Association
• Michigan 'reform' group's COA proposal removes six Rep judges, one Dem
• Hospital gets state medical malpractice caps applied, Jansen rules
• Mother sues state for racketeering: She says officials kidnapped her children
• Redmond released from jail during appeal process
• Convicted MSU rapist given retrial
• Campaign Contributions and the Michigan Court of Appeals
• Michigan Civil Rights Initiative granted petition
• Inactive Attorney Cannot Enforce Referral Fee Pact With Active Lawyer
• Court holds that late-abortion law is not unconstitutionally vague

References