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BOSTON (State House News Service) — For Gov. Maura Healey's first judicial nominee, an accomplished civil attorney and partner at Mintz, it was a run for the state Legislature 19 years ago that formed the "core" of what he would bring to the Superior Court bench.
Adam Sisitsky studied political science and public administration before heading off to law school, and told the Governor's Council at a pre-confirmation hearing Wednesday that he thought he was bound for a career in public service before Mintz Levin hired him in 1996.
Sisitsky talked for around an hour with council members, who have final approval power over new judges, about his legal experience, attitudes on issues like young adult brain development, and community service work such as reestablishing a youth basketball program in Framingham.
North Shore Councilor Eileen Duff wanted to know about life experience that would inform the kind of judge he would be if he dons black robes, and that prompted Sisitsky to reflect on his unsuccessful 2004 campaign for the state Senate.
The Framingham resident recalled knocking on 5,000 doors on the campaign trail and learning firsthand about challenges people face. He said he encountered "people from all walks of life who come to the door with struggles, with the greatest of humanity, with substance abuse issues that maybe family have, with financial struggles and challenges, maybe mental illness, maybe who knows what."
"And it's very humbling. I bring that. I bring that appreciation of humanity, and that every person who appears before me when I'm presiding in a courtroom has a story that I don't know, that I might not ever know, but they come before me looking for some amount of justice and to be treated fairly," the Superior Court nominee said. He added, "I've been guided by that since 2004 when I ran. As you surmised, I lost. And there's no shame in that. I'm proud of the effort I made but I'm proud of what I got out of it."
Then-Rep. Karen Spilka ultimately prevailed in that race for the MetroWest Senate seat, which was opened by the retirement of Sen. David Magnani.
The product of Framingham Public Schools, Sisitsky said he had "humble" roots and grew up in a home where public service was a "paramount" value. Some of his earliest memories, he said, are of sitting alongside his parents "on the very hard chairs in the Memorial Building in Framingham watching Town Meeting proceedings take place."
His father, current Framingham Mayor Charlie Sisitsky, was on hand Wednesday to watch the interview from a seat in the corner of the Council Chamber.
Sisitsky described his career route as a "curious path." Despite a conviction that he was destined for a career in public service, he heeded advice from others to apply for a job at Mintz Levin.
He began working in the Securities Litigation Group without prerequisite knowledge of "high finance or investments or in the financial world of shareholders and securities." Sisitsky rose to become chair of that group, he said, through his own "diligence and, frankly, curiosity for the law."
That intellectual curiosity won him praise from multiple councilors, particularly related to his preparation for his potential judgeship.
Nominees to the Superior Court, which hears murder cases, often face scrutiny from councilors over their balance of legal experience in civil or criminal matters. Sisitsky's career has almost entirely focused on civil cases, with the notable exception of around five months as a special prosecutor in the Middlesex County district attorney's office.
"What about your criminal background? Tell the council how you have prepared to take on criminal cases, when you have 5 percent criminal cases," Councilor Marilyn Devaney of Watertown asked, referring to his judicial application packet.
Sisitsky said his "due diligence" in recent months has included sitting in on a murder trial in Fall River, taking Mass. Continuing Legal Education programs, reading up on criminal procedure and law, and talking with current and former judges and district attorneys.
"Nothing can substitute for doing the job itself, but I'm doing everything to prepare for that hopeful eventuality as possible," he told councilors.
Devaney recalled a past nominee with no criminal practice experience who had "done nothing" to prepare before the public interview, and said Sisitsky went above and beyond what the 24-year councilor has seen from other nominees with similar resumes.
Central Massachusetts Councilor Paul DePalo also encouraged the candidate to visit various sites related to the criminal justice system, including a Department of Children and Families group home.
Former U.S. Sen. Mo Cowan, who worked at Mintz Levin and ML Strategies, was among the witnesses supporting Sisitsky on Wednesday. Another supporter was Sisitsky's legal assistant, Cheryl Swan, who said when she met him eight years ago he told her that "you won't be working for me, you'll be working with me."
"I almost wanted to lie and say he's just an awful person because I don't want him to leave," Swan joked.
Sisitsky was nominated Oct. 4 alongside Springfield lawyer Tracy Duncan as Gov. Healey's first pair of judicial nominees, and he is the first candidate this term to sit for a Governor's Council hearing.
Several councilors openly expressed their support Wednesday, and Councilor Christopher Iannella Jr. of Boston said he planned on voting to confirm Sisitsky later this month. The next council assembly is scheduled for Oct. 25.
Referring to the salary difference between high-powered Mintz and a state judgeship, South Coast Councilor Joseph Ferreira quipped: "Thank you for taking a pay cut."
Written by Sam Doran/SHNS
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