Six vie for three court seats
Voters will elect three new county judges from a slate of lawyers who share decades of legal experience
NORRISTOWN >> When Montgomery County voters head to the polls on Nov 5, they’ll elect three new county judges from a slate of six lawyers who share decades of legal experience.
Henry S. Hilles III, Melissa Schwartz Sterling and Virgil B. Walker will appear on the Democratic ballot.
On the Republican ballot, voters will find Matthew Hovey, Robert A. Zigmund and Gregg Richman.
The three top vote-getters will be elected to 10-year judicial terms that begin in January. The current annual salary of a Common Pleas Court judge is $183,184.
During judicial campaigns, candidates traditionally don’t express their opinions on matters that might come before them so the six candidates essentially are campaigning on their qualifications and experience.
A 1994 graduate of Temple University School of Law, Hilles was an associate with Dilworth, Paxson, LLP, Philadelphia, from 1994 to 1996.
Hilles then served as a Montgomery County prosecutor from 1996 to 1999 in the major crimes unit. Hilles was an associate with the Norristown law office of Michael J. D’Aniello from 1999 to 2003, focusing primarily on civil litigation.
Since 2003, Hilles has operated his own law office, handling criminal defense, civil and Orphans’ Court matters. Hilles also has served as an assistant county solicitor from 2008 to 2012.
“I have great respect for the rule of law and the role judges play in our judicial system. The concept of judicial independence is critical to American society and works best when judges are determined to properly interpret and apply the law to dispense justice,” said Hilles, 53, of Worcester, who maintained his 25 years of experience in trials and appeals has prepared him well “to handle the responsibilities and pressures of being a Common Pleas Court judge from day one.”
“The judges I have admired over the years are those that are prepared, engaged and determined to fairly resolve difficult issues and apply equal justice under the law,” added Hilles, promising to be such a judge.
Hilles, who also serves as chair of the Montgomery County Drug and Alcohol Planning Council, said his most important career highlight has been operating his own law firm and having “the great privilege” to represent people in court matters.
“Regardless of the nature of the case, I have strived to represent my clients zealously while following the rules of professional responsibility and treating all people with respect,” Hilles said.
Sterling, 49, of Whitemarsh, is a 1996 graduate of Widener University School of Law and is a partner in the Delaware County law office of Naulty, Scaricamazza & McDevitt. Joining the firm in 1997, Sterling concentrates her practice in the area of workers’ compensation.
“I want to be a judge to make a difference in people’s lives. I believe that every person deserves their day in court,” said Sterling, who also is serving her second term as a supervisor in Whitemarsh Township, currently as chairwoman.
Sterling was on the Board of Young Lawyers Division of the Philadelphia Bar Association, serving as chair, chair-elect and financial secretary between 2001 and 2003 during which she implemented various programs and activities to promote the young lawyers division and pro bono service. She served on the Board of Governors of the Philadelphia Bar Association from 2004-2007, according to her biography, and was appointed to the Montgomery County Commission for Women and Families in 2012.
“I think one of the most important qualifications for being a judge is your ability to listen and treat people with respect. I carry out that practice each day when I am in court or at a deposition,” said Sterling, who also touts her charitable activities with Laurel House and the Montgomery Child Advocacy Project.
“I recognize we each have a client to advocate for and we need to do our best for a client. Being a great advocate does not mean doing that at the expense of embarrassing or disparaging your opponent. I treat each person the way I want to be treated. I know I will do the same if I am fortunate enough to be elected,” Sterling said.
Walker, 61, of Dresher, obtained his law degree from North Carolina Central University in 1984 and previously worked as an arbitrator and chief assistant city solicitor in Philadelphia. Walker also worked as an assistant public defender in 1988 and from 1991 to 2018 he was an assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania where he investigated and prosecuted criminal cases, including fraud, bank robberies, narcotics trafficking, and white-collar crime, according to his resume.
“I have proudly spent my entire career in the courtroom.
I want to be a judge because it is a continuation of my community service. I love being a public servant and feel that there is no higher calling than to serve your fellow man,” Walker said.
Walker added a career highlight was prosecuting 35 members of a fraudulent enterprise, who victimized businesses out of millions of dollars, which resulted in 35 guilty pleas and restitution.
Walker said during his career he has acquired a detailed knowledge of courtroom procedure and the rules of evidence and maintained he “possesses the deep understanding of the law balanced with a profound sense of compassion.”
“In each of these legal roles I worked tirelessly to assure fair and just results My experience as a public defender and a criminal prosecutor, and my unwavering personal integrity, gives me a unique ability to apply the law objectively and fairly, free from personal bias and opinion,” Walker said. “I have observed first-hand how judges and attorneys impact the community, for better or worse.”
Hovey, 35, of Pottstown, a 2009 graduate of Villanova University School of Law, currently is a lawyer at Wolf Baldwin and Associates where his practice focuses on municipal law and civil litigation. Hovey has been a solicitor for Spring City Borough, an assistant solicitor for Pottstown Borough and an assistant solicitor for the Limerick Township Zoning Hearing Board, according to his resume.
“My municipal practice makes me unique in comparison to the other candidates. My service as a solicitor offers me the opportunity to witness firsthand the legislative process, to write and interpret laws, and to advise government officials on constitutional issues and consult with law enforcement,” said Hovey, adding the highlights of his career are related to the adoptions he’s facilitated.
“Our profession is so often stressful, competitive, and combative. Adoptions are simply pure joy and rewarding. I always appreciate when parents allow me to play a role in the start of a new chapter of their families,” said Hovey, who previously worked for Prince Law Offices in Pottstown from 2010 to 2013.
Hovey maintained there are “vital constituencies” missing from the county bench.
“None come from the Greater Pottstown area or western Montgomery County. Likewise, none of the judges are close to me in age,” Hovey said. “I offer the perspective of someone who professionally came of age during the Great Recession. I am the only candidate who understands the lingering impact of that period on young workers and their families, and the opportunities, or lack thereof, available to them.”
Zigmund, 58, of Glenside, is a graduate of Capital University Law School. Since 1988, Zigmund has been in private practice, specializing in business, family, real estate, bankruptcy, criminal and employment law as well as wills and estates. Zigmund previously was an associate lawyer at Gultanoff & Associates in Norristown from 2007 to 2011, according to his resume.
“I am running for judge because of a love of the law, proper judicial temperament, and a desire to help people,” Zigmund said. “I believe in the fair administration of justice, preservation of our rights as guaranteed in our Constitution, and advancement of programs that will help to solve the multitude of problems that we are currently facing in our courts and society.
“I believe that everyone coming before the court deserves to be treated fairly despite their race, color, sex, creed, gender, age, or national origin. Looking back over my life it seems that everything that I have done lead me to this position,” Zigmund added.
Zigmund said one of his career highlights has been representing people facing problems in the legal system and “guiding them through the complexity of laws, and achieving results that have been fair and equitable.” Zigmund said he also has served as a continuing legal education instructor at various colleges and universities.
“I believe in giving back to the community and have done so by being a volunteer firefighter for over 20 years, youth basketball coach, and Law Explorer Post Leader,” said Zigmund, who according to his resume also served as a compulsory arbitration panel attorney in Montgomery County Court from 1994 to 2011.
Richman, 46, an Upper Moreland lawyer, also is on the Republican ballot. Attempts to reach Richman for comment for this story were unsuccessful.
The three top vote-getters will be elected to 10-year judicial terms that begin in January. The current annual salary of a Common Pleas Court judge is $183,184.