Does County Bar Association Have Credibility?

by: Bill Liblick

It always seems amazing to me that a group of lawyers can meet, and decide amongst themselves (in closed ballot of course) if a Judge is qualified or unqualified for elective office. These are the very people they appear before.

The Sullivan County Bar Association made their recommendations for this year’s race for County Court Judge which pits incumbent Burton Ledina against Bethel Town Justice Cindy Barber. One would expect that two sitting judges would pass the panel, but then again this is Sullivan County.

Many political observers I have spoken to said they were not surprised Cindy Barber was rated “unqualified” by the bar association. They said the voting was motivated by backroom dirty politics, and not anything else.

I know both Burt Ledina and Cindy Barber and I honestly cannot understand how anyone, especially a member of the legal community, can say that either one of them does not have the qualifications to serve Sullivan County well as a jurist.

Then again, we are talking about the same Sullivan County Bar Association who in 1996 did the same thing to Frank LaBuda when he ran against Ledina.  Imagine that, they voted that Frank LaBuda was “unqualified” to serve us as our County Court Judge.

Maybe people are upset with Barber because she has raised the issue County Court Judges must retire at a certain age. Ledina will have to step down years before his term would expire if reelected. Obviously if we are unhappy with the law, it should be changed. The sad fact is that Ledina cannot fulfill a ten year term.

All this does not mean that Ledina should not serve us for several more years. He has every right to seek reelection. He has been nothing but a respected judge.

Barber told me it was upsetting what the Sullivan County Bar Association did, but noted that 39 members did say she was qualified. 

Barber also pointed out that an Independent Judicial Ethics Qualification Commission for the Third Judicial District in Albany deemed her qualified.  She said she had to complete an in depth application process which included information regarding her caseload and decisions over the past few years.

Unlike Ledina, the Bethel Town Justice said she never had a case overturned on appeal. 

So I ask the Sullivan County Bar Association, how can it be possible that Cindy Barber could be “qualified” to serve as a Bethel Town Judge for the past 12 years without incident, qualified to teach our local Judges, and qualified by law and Independent counsel to serve, but not qualified according to you? It just doesn’t make sense.

In any event, the voters will have a tough choice this November when electing a County Court Judge. As far as I can see it, both Burt Ledina and Cindy Barber are highly qualified.

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