SJI Board of Directors
Chief Justice Robert A. Miller
Chief Justice Miller served over 30 years as a member of the South Dakota judiciary. He took office as Chief Justice of the South Dakota Supreme Court in 1990, after serving as a justice since 1986. He retired in September 2001. Chief Justice Miller was a SD circuit judge from 1971 to 1986, serving as presiding judge from 1976 to 1986. He is a former Board member of the Conference of Chief Justices. He was appointed to the SJI Board of Directors in February 1998 which he chaired until December, 2010. He is a graduate of the University of South Dakota (B.S., 1961 and J.D., 1963). Following retirement he chaired the SD Constitutional Revision Commission, the Supreme Court's Special Committee on Judicial Campaign Intervention, and the Supreme Court's Special Committee to Study Cameras in the Trial Courts. He also served as a member of the South Dakota Criminal Code Revision Commission. In addition to periodic temporary assignments on the South Dakota Supreme Court and in the South Dakota Circuit Courts, he is an ADR neutral in various forums, including as a AAA arbitrator. He is a Fellow of the W.O. Farber Center for Civic Leadership at the University of South Dakota. Chief Justice Miller was born on August 28, 1939, in Aberdeen, South Dakota. He and his wife, Shirlee, have five children.
Chief Justice Jim R. Hannah
Chief Justice Hannah is currently serving as Chief Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court. He was first elected as an Associate Justice in 2000 and re-elected as Chief Justice in 2004 and 2008. Prior to serving on the Arkansas Supreme Court, he served as a Chancery/Probate Judge in the 17th Judicial District from 1979 to 1999. Chief Justice Hannah maintained a private law practice for ten and a half years before he was elected to the trial bench. While in private practice, he also served as the city attorney for Searcy, Arkansas, as city attorney for several communities in White County, as city judge, as deputy prosecuting attorney for Woodruff County and as the White County Juvenile Judge. Chief Justice Hannah has served on the Board of the Arkansas Judicial Council as the President. He has served as Chairman of the Arkansas Judicial Resources Assessment Committee, Legislative Committee, and Retirement Committee. He has also served on the board of the Conference of Chief Justices and is currently serving as Co-Chair of the Committee of Families and Courts. In addition, he sits on the U.S. Supreme Court Judicial Conference Committee on Federal-State Jurisdiction and the Arkansas Supreme Court Committees on Technology, Child Support, and Foster Care. Chief Justice Hannah received a B.S.B.A. from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and a J.D. from the University of Arkansas School of Law.
Chief Justice Chase T. Rogers
Chief Justice Chase Rogers has been the Chief Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court since 2007. Prior to that, she served as a judge in the Connecticut Appellate Court from 2006 to 2007, and as a judge in the Connecticut Superior Court from 1998 to 2006. Prior to becoming a judge, she was a partner at Cummings & Lockwood in Stamford, Connecticut, where she focused on employment law and commercial litigation. Chief Justice Rogers is a member of the Board of Directors of the Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) and of the Connecticut Bar Foundation Nominating Committee. She received her J.D. from Boston University School of Law and received her B.A. from Stanford University.
Chief Judge David V. Brewer
Chief Judge Brewer was elected to the Oregon Court of Appeals in 1999, and has served as Chief Judge since 2004. Prior to joining the Court of Appeals, he served as a state court trial judge and presided over criminal and civil matters. Previously, Chief Judge Brewer was a Partner at the law firm Lombard, Gardner, Honsowetz & Brewer. He is the immediate past President of the Council of Chief Judges of the State Courts of Appeals, where he serves on the Council's Executive Committee. In 2008, Chief Judge Brewer received the National Center for State Court's Distinguished Service Award for his contributions to the development of performance measures for the nation's state appellate courts. He holds a B.A. in economics from California State University at Sonoma and a J.D. from the University of Oregon School of Law.
Judge Gayle A. Nachtigal
Judge Nachtigal is currently a Circuit Court Judge in Washington County, Oregon. She has been a judge since 1991 serving as the Presiding Judge from 1996 to 2002. She is currently the Lead Judge on the Criminal Court Assignments. Judge Nachtigal is also involved in the American Judges Association where she served as Secretary, First and Second Vice President, and President. From 1999 to 2005, Judge Nachtigal served on the board of the National Center for State Courts. She currently serves on their Court Consulting Advisory Board. Judge Nachtigal has also previously served on the Oregon Judicial Conference Judicial Conduct Committee and the Court Technology Committee, as well as on the Oregon Uniform Trial Court Rules Committee. She received a B.L.S. from Bowling Green State University and a J.D. from Lewis and Clark Law School.
Judge Wilfredo Martinez
Judge Wilfredo Martinez is currently a County Court Judge in the 9th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida. He was initially appointed to the Court in 1998. Previously, Judge Martinez was a sole practitioner in Orlando, focusing on real estate and business law. Prior to that, he was in-house counsel for a manufacturer, distributor and retailer; worked for an insurance defense firm; and served as a staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society of the Orange County Bar Association of Florida. Judge Martinez is the former president of the National Conference of Metropolitan Courts and a member of the Florida Conference of County Court Judges. He received his J.D. from the New York University School of Law and his B.A. from Yale University.
Mr. Daniel J. Becker
Daniel Becker has served as State Court Administrator at the Administrative Office of the Courts for the State of Utah since 1995. In that capacity, he is responsible to the Utah Supreme Court and Utah Judicial Council for the administration of the state court system. From 1984 to 1995, Mr. Becker worked for the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts serving in the positions of: Deputy Director (1993-1995); Court Services Administrator (1986-1993); and Assistant to the Director (1984-1986). He also held the position of Trial Court Administrator for the Fourteenth Judicial District of North Carolina, and Assistant Director of Operations for the Georgia Administrative Office of the Courts. Mr. Becker was the recipient of the 2006 Warren E. Burger Award for Excellence in Judicial Administration. He holds a B.A. and M.P.A. from Florida Atlantic University.
Mr. John B. Nalbandian
John Nalbandian is a partner in the Litigation Department of Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP. He concentrates on appellate and general litigation in state and federal courts and is a member of the firm's Appellate Practice. Mr. Nalbandian has represented clients in a wide range of legal areas including antitrust, products liability, intellectual property, employment, white collar crime, and class actions. He also has extensive experience in administrative and international law. Mr. Nalbandian is a member of the Ohio, Kentucky, Virginia, and District of Columbia Bars, Ohio State Bar Association, Cincinnati Bar Association, Kentucky Bar Association, Telecommunications Board of Northern Kentucky, and the Northern Kentucky Tri-Ed Board of Directors. He was selected by Cincinnati Magazine as a 2005, 2006, and 2007 Super Lawyers Rising Star and is listed in The Best Lawyers in America in Appellate Law. He has also been certified by the Ohio State Bar Association as a specialist in Appellate Law. Previously, Mr. Nalbandian worked for four years at Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue in the Issues and Appeals Section of the Litigation Group. Prior to that, he clerked for one year for the Honorable Jerry E. Smith of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. He graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was Order of the Coif and managing editor of the Virginia Law Review, and earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School.
Mr. Hernán D. Vera
Hernán D. Vera is the President & Chief Executive Officer of Public Counsel, the nation’s largest pro bono, public interest law firm. He is the first Latino leader of the 40-year-old civil rights organization, which is based in Los Angeles. Prior to joining Public Counsel in 2002, Mr. Vera was a commercial litigator with the international firm of O’Melveny & Myers LLP, where he specialized in class actions. Mr. Vera has also worked as an Education Staff Attorney for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund and clerked for the Honorable Consuelo B. Marshall, U.S. District Court Judge for the Central District of California. He makes frequent media appearances on issues relating to access to justice, civil rights, and consumer protection. Mr. Vera received an A.B., with Distinction, from Stanford University, and his J.D. from the UCLA School of Law.
Ms. Marsha J. Rabiteau
Marsha J. Rabiteau has been Associate General Counsel and consultant on legal reform for Koch Industries, Inc., since 2007. Prior to Koch, Ms. Rabiteau was Vice President & Assistant General Counsel, Director of Civil Justice Policy for The Hartford Financial Services Group. From 1989 to 2001, she was Litigation Counsel and Crisis Manager for The Dow Chemical Company. She has participated as the chair or co-chair of the following organizations: Civil Justice Reform Group Operating Committee; Product Liability Advisory Council Foundation; IADC Class Action and Aggregated Torts Committee; and Federalist Society Litigation Practice Group. She is a member of the National Judicial College’s Advisory Council, and a member of the Michigan and Wisconsin Bars. She received her J.D., cum laude, from Marquette University Law School.
Ms. Isabel Framer
Isabel Framer is the founder and principal partner of Language Access Consultants, LLC. Since 1998, Ms. Framer has worked as a consultant to defense attorneys, prosecutors, law enforcement, state and federal government agencies, including the U.S. Department of Justice, and advocacy firms on language access for limited English proficient communities in the court system. She is a state court-certified judiciary interpreter and has been qualified as an expert witness in court proceedings regarding language access and interpreter standards. Ms. Framer was also a board member of the National Association of Judiciary Interpreters and Translators from 2003 to 2009, serving as chair from 2007 to 2009.
