Nineteenth Judicial District - Weld County Court Judge
Honorable John J. Briggs
Retention Year: 2022
Recommendation: Meets Performance Standard
The Nineteenth Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance finds that the Honorable John J. Briggs Meets Performance Standards. Six members of the Commission voted that Judge Briggs met judicial performance standards, with one voting no, and three absent. The Colorado statutory judicial performance standards are integrity, legal knowledge, communication skills, judicial temperament, administrative performance, and service to the legal profession and the public.
Judge Briggs presides over a criminal docket that includes a mix of misdemeanor, traffic offenses, and civil cases. He presents a calm demeanor, and effectively manages his docket. An area he has worked on is slowing down his speech to ensure he is understood. Through observation, his speech is at an effective speaking rate that is clear and concise. Judge Briggs is patient and uses language everyone understands while using legal knowledge when explaining his rulings. Commission members observed these qualities during their evaluation and interview.
The surveys were completed by forty-six attorneys and twenty-nine non-attorneys who responded to the judicial performance surveys expressing their opinion of Judge Briggs. The Commission reviewed the survey responses. Overall, Judge Briggs has a rating of 3.3, below the 3.4 average of all County Court Judges (the maximum score is 4.0). In response to the question, do you think Judge Briggs meets judicial performance standards? 89% of the attorney respondents answered yes, meets performance standards, and 11% answered no, does not meet performance standards. 67% of the non-attorney respondents answered yes, meets performance standards, and 33% answered no, does not meet performance standards. In the other categories he rated as high in communications, he rated average or just lower than average in case management, diligence, application of knowledge, demeanor, and rated lower than average in fairness. In the fairness category, non-attorneys rated Judge Briggs 2.2 when treating people fairly who represent themselves. When asked whether Judge Briggs is fair and impartial to both sides, attorneys rated him 3.2. One of Judge Briggs's strengths is communication; it is just as important that attorneys and non-attorneys feel treated fairly and without bias, even when a person is representing themselves in court. The Commission looks forward to Judge Briggs being cautious of this.
Judge Briggs was born in New York and grew up in Leonia, New Jersey. In 1990, he earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree with a double major in English and Philosophy. He earned his law degree from the Washburn University School of Law. In 2001, he relocated to Colorado, where he worked for three years as a Deputy State Public Defender then spent six years in private practice. In December 2010, Judge Briggs was appointed to the County Court Bench, and was sworn in on January 24, 2011. Judge Briggs is active in the community and is serving his 2nd 6-year term as a board of directors for the Weld Food Bank. Judge Briggs feels a strong community requires governmental leaders to contribute in ways to build relationships beyond the workday. Judge Briggs and his wife reside in Windsor.