Tardy Judge Censured
The Delaware Court on the Judiciary accepted a proposed censure of a family court judge.
This is a judicial disciplinary proceeding. On August 2, 2022, Chief Judge Newell of the Family Court submitted a notice alleging that Judge Louann Vari had repeatedly failed to comply with the Policy on Judicial Reporting on Matters Under Advisement, attached as Appendix D-4 to the Judicial Branch Operating Procedures (“the Notice”). The Notice alleged, among other things, that Judge Vari had cases under advisement for more than 90 days throughout 2020, 2021, and 2022. The Notice invoked the jurisdiction of the Court on the Judiciary.
A Panel was appointed to evaluate probable cause
On October 21, 2022, the Panel submitted its report under Court on the Judiciary Rule 7(c). The Panel expressed sympathy for challenges that Judge Vari faced in her personal life, but concluded that as “significant as the personal issues are, they do not warrant the frequency of the 90-day violations and the great length of time between dates of submission and dates of decision, delays being particularly aggravated in some cases.” The Panel determined that there was probable cause to believe that Judge Vari had violated Rule 2.5(C) of the Delaware Judges’ Code of Judicial Conduct and might be subject to sanction or retirement.
The judge agreed to accept a censure
On May 23, 2023, the Examining Officer submitted her final report and recommendation as well as Judge Vari’s affidavit of consent. The Board adopted the Panel’s findings of facts for Judge Vari’s tardy issuance of rulings between 2020 and 2022 and concluded that Judge Vari had “violated Rule 2.5(C) by failing to timely discharge her duties to the litigants in her court, over a significant period of time.” The Board also discussed the steps Judge Vari had taken to address the underlying causes of her tardy decisions. It also recognized Judge Vari’s years of service as a dedicated jurist.
The court here determined that censure was an appropriate sanction. (Mike Frisch)