Santa Fe attorney Denise Thomas appointed to District Court judgeship

Mar. 25—Santa Fe attorney and mediator Denise Thomas soon will take the bench as a family law judge in the First Judicial District.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham appointed Thomas to the position Monday, filling a vacancy created by the recent retirement of Sylvia LaMar, who served in the position for more than a decade.

Thomas said in a phone interview she was "honored and humbled" to be selected.

"I appreciate the governor's trust in me and hope to do a good job for the district," she said.

Thomas' legal career spans more than two decades and most recently has centered on representing clients in family law matters involving divorce, custody, child support, adoption, estate planning and probate.

Her appointment starts Friday, according to a statement issued by the Governor's Office.

Thomas, 52, graduated from high school in Texas and earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas in 1993 before obtaining a law degree at Tulane University in 1998, according to her application.

She worked as a law clerk for retired U.S. District Judge Martha A. Vázquez from 2006 to 2014 and has been in private practice since then, primarily at her own firm. She also worked at the Santa Fe law firm of Sommer, Karnes & Associates from 2017 to 2019.

Thomas initially will preside over a docket consisting mainly of divorce, child custody, domestic violence and kinship guardianship cases in the First Judicial District, which includes Santa Fe, Los Alamos and Rio Arriba counties.

"The new judge will start with [a] domestic docket but will be a general jurisdiction judge, like all of us," Chief Judge Bryan Biedscheid wrote in an email last month before Thomas had been appointed.

"Depending on the new judge's interests and the court's need, he or she may receive a different docket assignment in the future," he added.

Thomas wrote in her application for the appointment she's long had her sights set on becoming a District Court judge and is particularly interested in family law.

"While I have worked in many areas of law over the years, I have come to the place in my career where I find I am most fulfilled by working with children and families," she wrote in her application.

Her most recent previous employers wrote glowing letters of recommendation for Thomas, saying she had qualities which would make her an excellent judge.

Vásquez described Thomas as "a wealth of institutional court knowledge, a patient mentor and a team player with a good sense of humor" who had drafted close to 1,000 opinions in the eight years she worked for the federal court and was "never flustered by the pressure."

Attorney Karl Sommer wrote Thomas is "insightful, extremely thorough and practical" and able to maintain "a sense of professional equanimity that helps make the practice of law enjoyable" even when handling difficult and contentious cases.

She has, Sommer wrote, "the perfect temperament to be a judge."

Thomas was one of four people — including Assistant City Attorney Marcos D. Martinez, Los Alamos Municipal Court Judge Elizabeth Allen and state Risk Management attorney Jose G. Puentes — who applied to succeed LaMar.

The state Judicial Nominating Commission narrowed the list of candidates to three, nominating all but Martinez as possible replacements for LaMar.

The position pays $172,000 a year, according to the state Sunshine Portal.

After working one year as an appointee, Thomas will have to win election to stay on the bench and will be required to run for retention every six years thereafter.

A registered Democrat who has not campaigned for elected office, Thomas said she welcomes "the chance to meet more people in the community and hear their concerns."