ALJ Won’t Be Identified on Ballot as ‘Judge’ of Hearings

Wednesday, March 18, 2026

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ALJ Won’t Be Identified on Ballot as ‘Judge’ of Hearings

Use of ‘Temporary Judge’ as Designation Barred

By Roger M. Grace, editor

The Office of Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder yesterday stripped two judicial candidates of their chosen ballot designations that did not conform to statutory requirements, with descriptions of them less attractive to voters substituted, and one designation was winnowed to three words.

Administrative Law Judge Thanayi Lindsey had sought to be described on the ballot as “Judge of Administrative California Hearings-Special Education Division”—leading off with, and thus emphasizing, the word “Judge.”

However, under Elections Code §13107, candidates who wish to allude to their government employment must use an “actual job title.” The stature adds that “[i]f the candidate performs quasi-judicial functions for a governmental agency, the full name of the agency shall be included.”

Also, under a 1988 Court of Appeal decision, Luke v. Superior Court (Jones), the word “Judge” may be used only by a member of the judicial branch, though under a 1995 opinion of that court in Andrews v. Valdez, the title of “Administrative Law Judge” is permitted.

The new designation for Lindsey is, “ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE, OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS, STATE OF CALIFORNIA.”

Why all capital letters are used is not clear; other designations are in capital and lower case letters.

Lindsey is a candidate for Superior Court Office No. 181, also being sought by Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Ryan Dibble.

“Temporary Judge”

The Registrar-Recorder’s Office initially accepted attorney Samuel Wolloch Krause’s proposed designation of “Attorney/Temporary Judge.” However, his use of the word, “Judge” is prohibited under Luke.

Also, under §13107, only a “principal” pursuit may be listed.

As of yesterday, Krause is labeled an “Attorney/Legal Author.”

He is seeking Office No. 65. His competitors are Deputy Public Defender Justin Allen Clayton, family law attorney Chellei G. Jimenez, and Deputy County Counsel Anna Slotky Reitano.

In seeking to use “temporary judge” in an election, Krause violated a rule of the Los Angeles Superior Court’s Temporary Judges Program and is apt to be booted from it.

Dibble’s Designation

The designation of Dibble was originally, “Superior Court Commissioner, County of Los Angeles.” On Friday, the Registrar-Recorder’s Office declared:

“In reviewing the ballot designations that have been received, Mr. Dibble’s ballot designation will be changed to ‘Court Commissioner, County of Los Angeles’. During the review process we contacted the Superior Court regarding payroll titles and was informed from the actual payroll title is ‘Court Commissioner’ and have confirmed the information with our County Counsel.”

However, as of yesterday, the designation is “Superior Court Commissioner.”

Under §13107, “a candidate for judicial office who is an active member of the State Bar” may use the “actual job title,” but Dibble is on voluntary inactive status. Accordingly, he comes under the default limitation of using three words.

In other recent revisions, Frank Amador’s designation as “Attorney/Lawyer” was changed to “Attorney at Law”; Sharee Sanders Gordon’s label as “Deputy City Attorney, Los Angeles” was switched to “Deputy City Attorney, City of Los Angeles”; and Reitano’s chosen description as “Deputy County Counsel, Justice and Safety Division, County of Los Angeles.” was shortened to “Deputy County Counsel, County of Los Angeles.”

There are eight contests for open seats on the June 2 ballot and three incumbents are facing challengers.