Judge Mullins excited to fulfill new role

At 9 a.m. Thursday morning, Judge Michael Mullins was preparing for a custody trial in Keokuk County. He told the attorneys present that he had to keep his phone on because he was awaiting an important call. Mullins did receive a call that morning, and it was from the governor?s office. Gov. Terry Branstad called Mullins to congratulate him on his appointment to the Iowa Court of Appeals.

The last day for Branstad to make his appointment was Thursday, so Mullins knew he would receive a call, it was just a question of who would be on the other end of the line.

?The governor calls to make the appointment and his staffers call the people who are not selected,? said Mullins.

Mullins, of Washington, was one of 26 people to apply for the vacancy on the court of appeals. The vacancy was created earlier this year when appellate Judge Edward Mansfield left his position for a seat on the Iowa Supreme Court.

Mullins is a judge in Iowa?s Eighth Judicial District, but won?t be for long. As soon as he finishes his outstanding duties, Mullins will join the court of appeals. He expects to join that court later this month.

?I hoped I would get this opportunity, and I look forward to this new challenge,? said Mullins.

The promotion to appellate judge will be yet another major change in Mullins? life. Mullins has a master?s degree in social work and at one time in the 1970s managed three group homes for boys. In 1982, he passed the bar exam and immediately began practicing law in Washington. He worked as an attorney for two decades until Gov. Tom Vilsack appointed him to the bench as a district court judge for the eighth judicial district.

He has commented that his position as a judge is isolating and that he misses the personal contact with his clients and former partners. Nevertheless, as a trial judge, Mullins still interacts with witnesses, jurors, defendants, plaintiffs and attorneys. His new role as an appellate judge will be significantly different in that he will interact much less with the public.

?In my current role, I have daily face-to-face interaction with lawyers and clients through court proceedings,? he said. ?In my appellate position, my contact with lawyers will be limited and I won?t have any contact with the parties.?

Mullins explained that his job will consist of reviewing court documents, transcripts and briefs to determine if the trial was conducted properly. He described it as an ?academic pursuit.?

?When you hear the expression ?for the record,? that refers to the record made for the appeals court judge,? said Mullins. ?We don?t look people in the eye and see how they react. We examine the documents, exhibits and the legal arguments from the briefs.?

The role of an appellate judge depends on the type of case before him. For instance, an appellate judge who finds an error in a criminal case can have that case retried. In equity cases, such as divorce cases, an appellate judge can change the amount of money awarded to one of the parties, or change the provisions of a custodial arrangement.

?In equity cases, there is more latitude to fashion what is fair,? he said.

Mullins will be up for retention in November 2012. If he is retained, he will serve a term of six years before he is back on the ballot for re-election. That term length is the same for district court judges. Iowa State Supreme Court justices, on the other hand, serve eight-year terms.