Supreme Court appoints new members to Access to Justice Committee

TOPEKA—The Kansas Supreme Court appointed four new members and reappointed three to the Access to Justice Committee.

The new members are:

• Chief Judge Kevin Berens, who serves in the 15th Judicial District, composed of Cheyenne, Logan, Rawlins, Sheridan, Sherman, Thomas, and Wallace counties;

• District Judge Neil Foth, who serves in the 10th Judicial District, which is Johnson County;

• District Magistrate Judge Ronald Sylvester, who serves in Kingman County of the 30th Judicial District; and

• Meredith Snepp of the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library, Topeka.

Berens, Foth, and Sylvester will serve three-year terms that began July 1 and end June 30, 2023. Snepp will serve an unexpired term ending June 30, 2022.

Reappointed to three-year terms:

• Marcia Hannon, Kansas Supreme Court Law Library, Topeka;

• Sara Rust-Martin, Kansas Coalition Against Sexual And Domestic Violence, Topeka; and

• Amanda Truan, district court administrator of the 23rd Judicial District, composed of Ellis, Gove, Rooks, and Trego counties.

The Access to Justice Committee makes recommendations to the Supreme Court about issues such as increasing resources available for legal services for self-represented litigants in civil cases; improving planning and coordination for legal services delivery; and reducing potential barriers to equal access to justice. 

Other members of the committee:

• District Judge Carl William Ossmann, chair, who serves in the 3rd Judicial District, which is Shawnee County;

• Starla Borg Nelson, a lawyer at Navis & Nelson in Belleville;

• Christy Campbell, Kansas Legal Services, Wichita;

• Chief Judge Joe Dickinson of the 9th Judicial District, composed of Harvey and McPherson counties;

• Senior Judge James Fleetwood, Wichita;

• District Magistrate Judge Kenton Gleason, who serves in Hodgeman County of the 24th Judicial District;

• Kristi Hill, clerk of the district court in the 29th Judicial District, which is Wyandotte County;

• Christie Koehn, chief court services officer of the 6th Judicial District, composed of Miami, Linn, and Bourbon counties;

• Judge Sarah Warner, Kansas Court of Appeals;

• Penny Wells, clerk of the Comanche County District Court in the 16th Judicial District; and

• Ruth Wheeler, district court administrator of the 5th Judicial District, composed of Chase and Lyon counties.