Isaackses reportedly took trip with lawyers later appointed to cases

08:18 AM CST on Saturday, February 18, 2006

By Kevin Krause / The Dallas Morning News

Denton County District Judge Vicki Isaacks went on at least one overseas sailing trip with two lawyers whom she has appointed multiple times to represent children in family cases in her courtroom, according to county records and interviews.

Vicki Isaacks

One of the lawyers, Duane Coker, earned more than $63,000 in appointments paid for by the county from 2000 to 2005, the most of any of the judge’s appointees, according to county records.

Another, David Bouschor, earned about $23,000 paid by the county — the seventh-highest amount received in the same time period. Bouschor also went on the trip with Vicki Isaacks and her husband, Bruce Isaacks, the Denton County district attorney.

The principals have declined to comment. There have been no allegations that the lawyers paid the Isaackses’ vacation expenses, but the sailing vacation could raise doubts about Vicki Isaacks’ impartiality toward the lawyers, according to a state agency that disciplines judges.

“It’s better to just avoid the appearance of impropriety,” said Seana Willing, executive director of the State Commission on Judicial Conduct.

That’s because public perception is key to a judge’s ability to do their job and be seen as impartial, she said. Perception is reality for many people, she said.

Vicki Isaacks refused to answer questions about the trip when reached last week and did not return other phone calls and e-mails. Kelly Smith, her court coordinator, said on Thursday that Vicki Isaacks told her she cannot comment on the appointments or the trips because it might become part of litigation.

Bouschor and Coker did not return voicemail messages left twice at their offices or e-mails sent to them. They also did not return messages seeking comment left with their assistants.

Bruce Isaacks, who is running for re-election, said he would not confirm or deny any trips he and his wife may have taken with any lawyers until after the March 7 Republican primary election. He added that, in general, he and his wife have always paid their own expenses during vacations.

The lawyer fees Vicki Isaacks approved are the subject of a lawsuit against the county that calls into question her authority to order the county to pay the fees.

Denton lawyer Gary Kollmeier, who has received some of the appointments, said he believes Vicki Isaacks is a conscientious judge. He said he has known Vicki Isaacks since she was appointed to the bench.

“She would not have appointed me unless she thought it was justified or there was a need to protect the child,” he said. “I think she is fair, and that her primary focus in any case involving a child is to protect the children and promote their best interest.”

Vicki Isaacks, Coker and Bouschor are members of a yacht club based at Lake Texoma.

The Isaackses sailed with Coker and his wife as well as Bouschor and his wife in Grenada about three years ago, according to mutual friend Roy Anderson, who went on the trip.

“These people share common interests and they spend time together,” said Anderson, a Denton accountant. “It’s not like they’re joined at the hip.”

Anderson said the Isaackses didn’t spend all of their time with the other two couples and rented their own boat.

Anderson said he was invited to join the Isaackses, Bouschors and Cokers last year for a similar sailing trip, this time to the Greek Islands. But Anderson said he did not go because of financial reasons. Judges have to be careful about the perception they create by socializing with lawyers who practice in their courts or receive appointments, according to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct.

Willing, the executive director, said the commission doesn’t want to tell judges who they can or can’t associate with. But vacationing with lawyers could raise questions, she said.

“You could jump to all kinds of conclusions,” she said. “It could raise someone’s suspicion that there was some favoritism with appointments or rulings.”

Vicki Isaacks approved legal bills submitted by Coker and Bouschor that were higher than the usual rates paid by the county.

Denton County judges and lawyers say the going rate for appointments paid by the county is about $125 an hour. Vicki Isaacks has approved Bouschor’s rate of $275 an hour, as well as Coker’s $195 hourly rate, court records show.

Vicki Isaacks told the Denton Record-Chronicle last year that she chooses lawyers who are “matched to the complexities of the cases.” She said it’s impossible to compare those cases to cases in which lawyers are paid $125 an hour.

Coker, Bouschor and other lawyers were appointed to represent children in divorce, paternity and child custody cases in Vicki Isaacks’ 393rd District Court.

Their fees were part of about $400,000 in court-appointed fees paid by the county to about 40 lawyers Vicki Isaacks authorized for family cases since taking the bench in 2000, county records show.

State law requires the county to pay appointed lawyers’ fees in civil cases only when a parent is indigent and a government entity such as Child Protective Services files to end their parental rights. Otherwise, the parents are responsible for paying the fees.

According to county records, even when CPS was not involved, Vicki Isaacks ordered the county in some cases to pay the ad litem lawyers’ fees. State law does not prohibit a county from paying lawyers’ fees in non-CPS cases.

Denton County Judge Mary Horn has said that county officials haven’t been told they shouldn’t pay the bills. She said she would prefer a Texas attorney general’s opinion on the matter, but that has not been possible because of the lawsuit. “The lawsuit has gummed up the works,” she said.

Vicki Isaacks generally chooses not to hear CPS cases to avoid the appearance of a conflict given that her husband is the district attorney, whose office could be involved in those cases.

In ordering the payments, Vicki Isaacks cited Section 107.015 of the family code, which requires counties to pay ad litem fees only when the parents are indigent and a government entity tries to end their parental rights.

Vicki Isaacks has said previously that she makes such appointments in 2 percent of her cases to protect children’s rights and give them a voice in bitter custody fights. That number could not be independently verified through county records.

She has ordered some parents to reimburse the county, court records show, but it’s unclear how much money the county got back.

County Auditor James Wells and District Clerk Sherri Adelstein said their offices do not have a breakdown of such reimbursements for each district court.

Overall, court-ordered reimbursements are generally small. Of last year’s roughly $3.3 million in court-ordered attorney fees from the district, county and juvenile courts, about $300,000 or 9 percent was reimbursed to the county, mostly in criminal cases, according to the county auditor’s office.

Denton lawyer William Trantham sued the county in September for agreeing to pay the lawyers’ fees.

His lawsuit seeks recovery of the money, requests an injunction to ban future payments and alleges “bribery and corrupt influence.” The district attorney, which represents the county, has not filed a formal response to the lawsuit.

Horn said county commissioners — who are defendants in the suit — have asked Bruce Isaacks’ civil division for a legal opinion but have not received one yet.

Trantham said it would be a conflict for Bruce Isaacks’ office to issue an opinion concerning the conduct of Bruce Isaacks’ wife. He said Bruce Isaacks should recuse himself and have an independent counsel take over the case.

Bruce Isaacks said he had wanted to seek an Attorney General’s opinion on the issue but that Trantham’s lawsuit prevented that.

The lawsuit states that in exchange for the appointments, some lawyers provided Vicki Isaacks with political and financial support as well as companionship on the sailing trips.

“The attorneys paid a substantial amount to the lessor of the sailing boat, for food, drink and equipment for the voyage,” the lawsuit said.

Vicki Isaacks has only received one campaign contribution since July 2003 — a single $2,000 donation from Bill Wood. The county elections office maintains campaign finance reports for only two years, so earlier reports were not available. Vicki Isaacks was appointed by the governor in 1999 to the newly created judicial district. She was elected without opposition in 2004 to a term that expires in 2008.

Trantham said Vicki Isaacks did not hide the fact that she vacationed with Coker and  Bouschor, who also have received numerous court appointments in the county’s probate court. He said she told him about the trip to the Greek Islands.

“This is not a secret. It was open and blatant,” he said. “They were talking about how they had a great time; how they spent all this time in the islands. They were all giddy and happy.”

The Denton Record-Chronicle contributed to this report.