Total Credits: 2 CLE
At this year’s Bench and Bar Winter Program, you'll have the opportunity to attend breakout sessions tailored to your practice area. A hosted reception takes place after the seminar.
Update from Pima County Superior Court
Honorable Jeffrey Bergin, Presiding Judge, Arizona Superior Court in Pima County
Breakout Sessions
Civil
Honorable Kellie Johnson, Presiding Judge, Civil Bench
Honorable Cindy Kuhn, Civil Bench
Honorable Greg Sakall, Civil Bench
Peter Akmajian, Schmidt Sethi & Akmajian
Laura Mac Ban, MacBan Law Offices
Criminal
Honorable James Marner, Presiding Judge, Criminal Bench
Honorable Casey McGinley, Civil Bench
Tracy Miller, Pima County Attorney's Office
Laura Udall, Laura E. Udall PLLC
Family/Juvenile (combined session)
Honorable Randi Burnett, Presiding Judge, Family Bench
Honorable Michael Butler, Presiding Judge, Pima County Juvenile Court
Honorable John J Assini, Family Bench
Honorable Lisa Bibbens, Pima County Juvenile Court
Honorable Danielle Constant, Family Bench
Laura Belleau, Karp & Weiss PC
Kymberley Moffett, Law Offices of Kymberley W Moffett PLLC
Probate
Honorable Kenneth Lee, Presiding Judge, Probate Bench
Honorable Danelle Liwski, Associate Presiding Judge, Pima County Superior Court
Robert Fleming, Fleming & Curti PLC
Elizabeth Noble Rollings Friman, Fleming & Curti PLC
Chairperson
Ted Schmidt, Schmidt Sethi & Akmajian
Honorable Kellie Johnson is the Civil Presiding Judge at the Pima County Superior Court. Governor Ducey appointed her to bench June of 2017. She graduated cum laude from the University of Arizona School of Law in 1996 and joined the Pima County Attorney's Office as a trial prosecutor in 1997. During her career as a prosecutor, she tried over 150 jury trials, and received awards at both the State and national level for her trial advocacy. In 2015, she was the recipient of the Arizona State Bar's Michael C. Cudahy Criminal Justice Award. She is currently the Dean of the Judicial College of Arizona. Judge Johnson also serves on numerous Arizona Supreme Court committees including the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Evidence, the Capital Case Oversight Committee, and the Commission on Victims in the Courts.
is an Arizona native who earned both his undergraduate degree and his law degree (with distinction) from the University of Arizona. In September 2011, Judge Bergin was appointed to serve as a trial judge on Arizona's Superior Court in Pima County. This followed a twenty-year career in civil litigation. Since that time, he has served on the civil bench (presiding judge), family bench (presiding judge) and the criminal bench. He also served as the Associate Presiding Judge for the Court from 2019 through July 2021. Most recently, Arizona's Supreme Court appointed Judge Bergin as the Presiding Judge for Pima County. Judge Bergin began his term as the Presiding Judge on July 1, 2021.
Peter Akmajian is a trial lawyer with 30+ years of experience and 40 jury trials in Tucson, Phoenix, Yuma, Bisbee and Nogales under his belt. These trials have mainly involved serious personal injury, medical malpractice and wrongful death. He was a civil defense lawyer for many years before making the switch to the plaintiff's side recently. Since 1998, Peter has been certified by the State Bar of Arizona as a Specialist in Personal Injury and Wrongful Death, and he is a long-time member of the State Bar's Commission that vets potential specialists. Peter is honored to have been inducted into three organizations recognizing outstanding trial work: the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, and the International Society of Barristers. He is also a long-time member of another prestigious trial lawyer organization, the American Board of Trial Advocates. Peter is honored to have served as a judicial law clerk for Vice-Chief Justice Frank X. Gordon of the Arizona Supreme Court, from 1984 – 1985. Peter graduated from the University of Arizona for both undergraduate and law school (B.A., with distinction 1980) (J.D., with distinction 1984).
Honorable James Marner was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court bench in 2012 by Governor Brewer. He is currently the Presiding Judge of Criminal Bench. Judge Marner also served as the Presiding Judge of the Family Bench for 2 years. Before that he served on the Civil Bench where, among other things, he was the Presiding Arbitration Judge and the Elections Judge. Judge Marner taught Pretrial Civil Litigation as an adjunct professor at the University of Arizona law school. Before taking the bench, he was a trial attorney at the King County Prosecutor's Office in Seattle and then spent 15 years as a civil trial attorney in Pima County.
Laura Udall is a criminal defense attorney in private practice in her hometown of Tucson, Arizona. She attended the University of California at Berkeley for her undergraduate degree and received her law degree from the University of Utah. Following law school she clerked for the Honorable Alfredo Marquez for District Court in Arizona. She then went to work at the Pima County Public Defender for 4 years. In 1992 she and Dan Cooper opened their firm, Cooper and Udall PC, and practiced together until 2021 when she opened her solo firm Laura E. Udall PLLC. Laura has tried over 110 cases to jury verdict. She is qualified as learned counsel for capital work in both Federal and State jurisdictions. She has been an Adjunct Professor at the University of Arizona teaching trial advocacy since 2010. Laura was inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2017.
Honorable Randi Burnett has served as a commissioner of the Superior Court in Pima County since April 2021 and is currently assigned to the family law bench. Prior to joining the bench, Randi was a partner at Waterfall, Economidis, Caldwell, Hanshaw & Villamana, P.C. for several years and then spent her last two years of practice at The McCarthy Law Firm. Her family law practice included a broad range of family law matters including divorce, legal separation, same-sex issues, multi-state jurisdictional issues, high conflict custody issues, grandparent visitation, minor child guardianships, child support, spousal maintenance, paternity, and appellate matters. Randi has presented at multiple legal seminars on numerous topics, including complex financial issues, ethical issues, high conflict custody concerns, and the unique concerns involving autistic children in custody matters. Outside of work, Randi enjoys traveling and spending time outdoors with her husband and two children.
Honorable Michael J. Butler was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court in May 2013, and he has been assigned to the juvenile, criminal and civil benches. Effective July 1, 2023, Judge Butler will assume the role of Presiding Judge on the juvenile court bench. Before his appointment, Judge Butler practiced as a commercial litigator in Tucson for twenty years. He received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Arizona, and prior to his legal career he worked as a certified emergency paramedic.
Honorable John J. Assini (Jack) practiced law beginning in 1994 and was in private practice, handling family law matters until he was appointed to the bench as a Commissioner for the Pima County Superior Court in March of 2015. He is currently doing a family law trial rotation. He received his BA from the University of Arizona in Elementary Education, taught 1st grade for four years, could not find a rich wife, so he returned to University of Arizona for his J.D. degree. Jack is the Past Chair of the Executive Council of Family Law Section of the State Bar of Arizona, a current board member for AZ- AFCC (Arizona- Association of Family and Conciliation Courts) and currently continues to be a member at large with the Executive Council of Family Law Section of the State Bar of Arizona. Jack was frequently appointed as a Parenting Coordinator for high conflict family law matters, and as an attorney or best interest attorney for children. Jack also practiced in the area of collaborative law and was a member of the Southern Arizona Collaborative Law Group. As a Judge Pro Tem, Jack participated in hundreds of successful settlement conferences and mediations and continues to bring that style and technique to the bench.
Honorable Lisa Bibbens is a court commissioner for the Arizona Superior Court in Pima County, serving on the family law bench commencing in July 2014, and currently serving on the juvenile court bench. She graduated in 1990 from St. Mary’s University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in international business management, summa cum laude, and received a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Arizona College of Law in 1993. Prior to serving as a court commissioner, she was a partner in Liberty & Bibbens, P.C., practicing exclusively in the area of family law following her admission to the State Bar in 1993. The State Bar of Arizona Board of Legal Specialization certified her as a family law specialist from 2005 through 2014. She was nominated to and recognized as one of Arizona's Finest Lawyers. She received the Arizona Bar Foundation “Top 50 Pro Bono Attorneys of Arizona” award in 2001, 2011, and 2013, and the Volunteer Lawyers Program Pro Bono Attorney of the Month Award in 2000 and 2011. She is a frequent presenter at continuing legal education presentations; a member of the 2017 Judicial Conference Planning Committee; a member of both the Dependency Alternative Program and the Juvenile Court Family Law Protocol Committee; a member of the LGBTQ court-involved youth committee; and participates on various court committees and workgroups addressing family law, juvenile law, and self-represented litigant issues. She enjoys spending time with her family, trail running, farmers markets, photography, travel, and cooking.
Judge Danielle J.K. Constant received her undergraduate degree in History with a minor in English from Dordt University in Iowa in 1999. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Arizona College of Law in 2002. She practiced law in Tucson, Arizona, beginning in 2002. She started her career at the Pima County Attorney’s Office as a criminal prosecutor for vehicular, violent, property, narcotics, and misdemeanor crimes. In 2014, she changed to private practice at two different Arizona firms. She practiced primarily in civil defense including government defense, eminent domain, personal injury, medical malpractice, employment, and appellate practice. She has been a member of organizations including the Pima County Bar Association, the Tucson Defense Bar, the Arizona Association of Defense Counsel, and the Arizona Women Lawyer’s Association. She was formerly the co-chair of the Arizona Condemnation Summit for eminent domain practitioners.
Judge Constant was appointed by Governor Doug Ducey to the Pima County Bench in October of 2022, Division 12, and is currently serving on the Family Bench.
She is married and has four (sometimes) wonderful children (ages 6 to 12) and a very lazy dog.
Laura Belleau is a shareholder in the law firm of Karp & Weiss, P.C. where she limits her practice to family law cases, concentrating on those involving complex financial and children's issues. An almost life-long resident of Tucson, she received both her undergraduate and Juris Doctorate degrees from the University of Arizona. She is certified as a Family Law Specialist by the State of Arizona's Board of Legal Specialization. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML), and currently serves as First Vice President on the Executive Committee. She is a past President of Arizona's Chapter of AAML and has previously served as the both the National and Arizona Chapter Treasurer. She is a Diplomate in the American College of Family Trial Lawyers, a select group of the top 100 family trial lawyers from across the country known for excellence in family law trial practice. She serves on the State Bar's Family Law Executive Council, recently served on the Supreme Court's Child Support Guidelines Review Committee and is currently serving on its Spousal Maintenance Guidelines Committee. She is a current member of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC), and a past-president of Arizona's chapter. She is a Judge Pro Tempore for the Arizona Superior Court, Pima County and she frequently speaks and writes on family law topics.
Kymberley Moffett earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Arizona in 1992 and her J.D. from California Western School of Law in 1995. She has been a member of the Arizona State Bar since 1996. Ms. Moffett was with the Apache County Attorney’s office from 1996-1999 handling child abuse and sex offense cases. Ms. Moffett began as a solo practitioner in Tucson in August 1999. From 1999 to the present day, Ms. Moffett has practiced in both Pima County Superior Court and Pima County Juvenile Court representing children, parents, grandparents, kinship, and foster parents in family law, dependency, termination and adoption actions. She has also acted as a Court Appointed Advisor and Best Interests Attorney in the domestic arena. Ms. Moffett is currently a Partner at Aguilar Moffett P.L.L.C. and continues to practice in both the family law and juvenile arenas.
Kenneth Lee was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court in 1997. He has held assignments on the Civil, Criminal, Family and Probate benches. He has served four terms as Associate Presiding Judge, two terms as Civil Presiding Judge and once as Probate Presiding Judge. In addition to his judicial assignments he has served on the Arizona Supreme Court Committees of the Superior Courts and of the Data Standards and Performance Review. He has been a member of the State Bar Committees for Civil Jury Instructions and Civil Practice and Procedure. Judge Lee has presented at numerous conferences, seminars and educational programs on topics, including new judge orientation, judicial writing, professionalism, and civil case management. He was born in Coolidge, Arizona. He attended the University of Arizona, where he received his degree in Business Administration (Accounting) in 1978 and his Juris Doctorate in 1981. He practiced in Tucson for sixteen years in the area of civil litigation. He was secretary of the Arizona Judges Association for two years.
was appointed to Division 6 of the Pima County Superior Court bench on April 8, 2011. She served on the family law bench from 2011 to 2014 when she joined the criminal bench. Beginning July of 2015 through 2017 she also presided over all Pima County criminal competency, criminal mental health court, guilty except insane and sexually violent predator cases. She currently serves as the Presiding Criminal Judge in Pima County. Prior to the serving on the Pima County Superior Court bench Judge Liwski served as a hearing officer presiding over juvenile matters, including juvenile drug court. She also served as an Assistant United States Attorney and Deputy Pima County Attorney. Ms. Liwski received her Bachelor's Degree in business from New Mexico State in 1987 and a Juris Doctor from the University of Arizona in 1990. She has been active in the bench and bar with the highlight being the Arizona High School Mock Trial Program. 05/19
is a partner in the Tucson law firm of Fleming & Curti, P.L.C., with a practice limited to trust (and special needs trust) administration, guardianship, conservatorship, estate planning, and probate. Mr. Fleming is a co-author (with Lisa Davis) of The Elder Law Answer Book, and (with Prof. Kenney Hegland) of New Times, New Challenges: Law and Advice for Savvy Seniors and Their Families. Mr. Fleming has been selected as a Fellow of both the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. He is a past Chair of both the Mental Health and Elder Law and the Probate and Trust Sections of the State Bar of Arizona, and a past President of the National Elder Law Foundation. Mr. Fleming is certified as an Estate and Trust specialist by the State Bar of Arizona, and as a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA) by the National Elder Law Foundation. He is also an Accredited Estate Planner (AEP) with the National Association of Estate Planning Councils. Mr. Fleming is a founding member of the Special Needs Alliance (www.specialneedsalliance.com). Perhaps more importantly, he is a husband, father, grandfather, scuba diver, pilot and martial arts practitioner.
is a Principal of Fleming & Curti, PLC, an elder law and fiduciary practice located in Tucson, Arizona. She counsels her clients on estate planning, guardianship/conservatorship and estate administration matters. Elizabeth is a licensed fiduciary and frequent serves as a fiduciary for individuals and families in Arizona and throughout the country. She enjoys working collaboratively and embraces unusual cases. A recipient of the Tucson Hispanic Chamber of Commerce “40 Under 40” award, Elizabeth is active in community and professional organizations and enjoys public speaking. Elizabeth is a member of the Special Needs Alliance and the Arizona State Bar Probate & Trust Executive Council. In addition, Elizabeth serves on the Board of Trustees for the TMC Hospital, the Primavera Foundation and Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona. She earned her law degree from the University of Arizona after earning her bachelor’s degree from Connecticut College, where she graduated cum laude. Fleming & Curti is a dog-friendly office, which means that Elizabeth’s goldendoodle, Duncan, often joins her at work. During her free time, Elizabeth enjoys gardening, grilling, hiking, and paddle boarding with her husband, Doug.
Ted Schmidt is Vice President of the Arizona State Bar, a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, the International Academy of Trial Lawyers and the International Society of Barristers as well as an Associate of the American Board of Trial Lawyers.
Honorable Greg Sakall was appointed to the Pima County Superior Court in 2017. He is currently assigned to the Civil Bench. After law school, Judge Sakall clerked for U.S. District Judges William D. Browning and Cindy K. Jorgenson. From 2004 to 2017, he was in private practice. He has also been an adjunct associate professor and is a guest lecturer at the James E. Rogers College of Law.
Education: Hillsdale College (B.A., summa cum laude, double major in Spanish & History); University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (J.D., summa cum laude).
