Nathan Hecht

From Judgepedia

Nathan L. Hecht (b. 1949) is a Republican justice of the Texas Supreme Court. Hecht was elected to the court in 1988 and took office on January 1, 1989^[1]. He was reelected in 1994^[2], 2000^[3], and 2006^[4]. Hecht is currently the most senior justice of the court. His term ends on December 31, 2012.^[5]

Legal education

Justice Hecht earned his B.A. at Yale University with honors in philosophy and graduated cum laude from the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law. ^[5]

Legal experience

Justice Nathan Hecht clerked for Judge Roger Robb of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He has served as lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve, worked in private practice, and served on the 95th District Court from 1981 to 1986. In 1986, he was elected to the Court of Appeals, Fifth District, where he remained until he was elected to the Texas Supreme Court. ^[5]

Awards and associations

Hecht is a member of the American Law Institute, a member of the Texas Philosophical Society, and a fellow of the Texas and American Bar Foundations. He is on the advisory board of the S.M.U. Law Review and was named Outstanding Young Lawyer in 1984 by the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers. ^[5]

Miers controversy and aftermath

In May 2006, Justice Hecht was disciplined by the Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct for "an improper use of his office and position to promote Miers's private interest" during the nomination; a three-judge panel exonerated Hecht of the charge after he appealed the decision." The New York Times reported that Justice Hecht assured the Arlington Group, a group of Christian Conservatives, of Harriet Miers' pro-life views. At the time, Miers was nominated to be an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.

Refunding legal fees

In March 2007 Hecht said that he had asked Texas representative Tony Goolsby to propose a bill that would make the state reimburse his $340,000 legal fees. ^[6] Goolsby withdrew the bill after learning that Hecht had already been reimbursed for the bill through "donations." Hecht defended his position by saying, “Here is the problem: If judges are sanctioned like this and it’s unjust and it’s wrong and they want to prove it, they can represent themselves or hire a lawyer that you can’t pay for on a judge’s salary.” He is paid $152,500 each year.^[7]

Ethics violation

While working to remove the misconduct sanction imposed on him by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct (due to his support for Harriet Miers), Justice Hecht accrued a bill of $340,000. Ethics violations were charged against him as he received $100,000^[8] to pay for the bill by Texas Firm, Jackson Walker - Walker appears frequently before the Texas Supreme Court. Moreover, these allegations extend to other Texas law firms along with Jackson Walker, that provided Hecht with $447,000 to cover his Miers bills as Hecht sided favorably with those firms he solicited and from where he received moneys.^[9].

In January 2008, Texas Watch filed a complaint against Justice Hecht on the grounds that he illegally paid for personal travel with political donations; the watchdog organization cited a report from the Texas Ethic Commission that Justice Hecht spent $10,000 from his campaign to fund in-state flights. Even though Justice Hecht will not be up for re-election until 2012, Hecht defended his actions as the trips home were for campaigning purposes. Two other Texas Supreme Court justice are now under investigation for similar matters as well: Justice David Medina and Justice Paul Green.^[10][11]

External links

• Jackson Walker Allegations
• Biased Rulings Allegations

References

v • d • e Texas Supreme Court Current Chief: Jefferson • Green • Guzman • Hecht • Johnson • Medina • O'Neill • Wainwright • Willett Former Cornyn • Johnson • Brister