Private Judges and the Stealth Privatization of California Courts. Judicial Branch Outsourcing Public Court Functions To the For-Profit Private Sector
18 videos • 106 views • by Susan Bassi The divorce of prominent actors Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt revealed a controversial and under-the-radar change in the operation of California courts. The courts effectively are outsourcing public court functions to the for-profit private sector. For-profit, "private judges" are now deciding critical issues that were previously decided by government judges. The private judges are actually lawyers who have gone into the lucrative business of private judging. The lawyer-judges often have friendships or other pre-existing relationships with the attorneys who appear before them on behalf of clients who are involved in a divorce or other types of litigation. Under state law, those pre-existing relationships constitute a conflict of interest that must be disclosed to all lawyers and parties involved in a case. On July 23, 2021 the BBC reported: "Angelina Jolie has clinched a victory in her legal battle with Brad Pitt after a [private] judge they hired was disqualified from their divorce case. "The actors have been locked in a court fight for custody of their children since Jolie filed for divorce in 2016. "A private judge, John Ouderkirk, made a ruling that granted Pitt custody in May this year. But on Friday, a California court agreed with Jolie's appeal to remove the judge from the case. "In its ruling, the appeals court said Judge Ouderkirk did not disclose his business relationships with Pitt's lawyers. "This was an 'ethical breach' that may cast doubt on the 'judges ability to be impartial,' the court said."