News Release
January 27,
2012
Lekar Named Chief Judge of First Judicial
District
Des
Moines, January 27, 2012 —The
Iowa Supreme Court has appointed District Judge Kellyann
M. Lekar, Waterloo, as Chief Judge of the First
Judicial District. Judge Lekar succeeds Judge Thomas
N. Bower who was appointed by Governor Branstad to the Iowa Court of Appeals.
"Judge Lekar has proven leadership abilities," Chief Justice
Cady said. "She has a strong work ethic, involvement in several innovative
court projects and an excellent working relationship with judges and staff. I'm
confident she will make an effective chief judge. "
Judge Lekar was born in Waterloo. She earned her undergraduate
degree from Iowa State University in 1990 and her law degree from the
University of Iowa in 1993. Prior to her appointment to the bench, Judge Lekar was in private practice in Waterloo until her
appointment to the bench in 2005. She is co-chair of the First Judicial
District Family Law Mediation Committee and a member of the district's public
outreach committee. She is also a state delegate to the American Bar
Association's National Council of State Trial Judges a member of the
American Bar Association, Courts and Community Committee of the Iowa Judges
Association, the Iowa State Bar Association Jury Instructions Committee, and
the Black Hawk County and Iowa State Bar Associations.
"I am
pleased to have an opportunity to serve the First Judicial District as Chief
Judge," she said. "As a native of Waterloo, I am proud to serve and represent
northeast Iowa in this position. The judges and staff of the First
Judicial District are hardworking, innovative and dedicated and I am privileged
to work with them on a daily basis. Together we will strive to provide
excellent judicial branch services to the citizens of the First Judicial
District."
As chief
judge, Judge Lekar will supervise all judicial
officers and court employees in the district, supervise the performance of
administrative and judicial business in the district, set the times and places
of holding court, designate presiding judges, and serve on the judicial
council, which advises the supreme court on administrative matters affecting
the trial courts. In addition, she will continue to preside over cases.
The First Judicial
District is located in northeast Iowa and comprises 11 counties: Allamakee,
Black Hawk, Buchanan, Chickasaw, Clayton, Delaware, Dubuque, Fayette, Grundy,
Howard, and Winneshiek. The district has 14 district judges, six district
associate judges, three associate juvenile judges, four senior judges, 20
part-time magistrates, and 204 employees, with an operating budget for the
current fiscal year of approximately $16,501,993. A total of 99,309 cases were
filed in the First Judicial District last year.
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2012
Iowa
Supreme Court
1111
East Court Avenue
Des
Moines, IA 50319
515-281-3952
