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THE LEGAL BRIEF
VOLUME 40, ISSUE 4
A View From The Bench
By Judge Sharonda Amamilo Thurston County Superior Court
“ The Privilege of Opportunity ”
The Law and Justice System – Overcoming the Perils of Logical Falla- cy: Composition and Division – Part I
The fallacy of composition and division assumes that one part of something will apply to the whole, or that the whole must apply to all the parts.
The fallacy of composition is an informal fallacy that arises when one infers that something is true of the whole from the fact that it is true of some part .
A fallacy of division is an informal fallacy that occurs when one reasons that something that is true for a whole must also be true of all or some of its parts.
For Example:
“ The Law and Justice System is biased and inequitable. ”
“ The Law and Justice System is fair and balanced. ”
Many would instinctively respond – “ of course it is! ” – to either statement.
Others may have a neutral or nuanced response, arguing that it is neither of those statements. Instead arguing that “ the Law and Justice System only seeks to address the individual needs of a given litigant, whether it be an individual, an entity, or an idea. ”
As a trial judge in Thurston County Superior Court, I am obligated to adhere to the Code of Judicial Conduct.
CANON 2 - A JUDGE SHOULD PERFORM THE DUTIES OF JUDICIAL OFFICE IMPARTIALLY, COMPETENTLY, AND DILIGENTLY.
RULE 2.5. Competence, Diligence, and Cooperation
Comment 1 to CJC 2.5 is relevant to this article:
Competence in the performance of judicial duties requires the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness, and preparation reasonably necessary to perform a judge ’ s responsibilities of judicial office .
Since being entrusted by the citizens of Thurston County I have presided over many matters touching the everyday lives of Thurston County citizens in felony criminal and civil matters, family and juvenile law bench trials, warrant applications, administrative appeals, ballot title challenges, and motion and hearing calendars. Some of the most impactful decisions involve decisions on Sentencing individuals who are responsible for crime in this community. Other decisions cause people ’ s lives to redirect or shift in ways they had not planned or imagined. I understand that my knowledge of a part or parts of the system, without a full appreciation of all the parts that make up the whole Law and Justice System, can impact my Competence in the deepest sense. It has been an absolute privilege to serve the community in this capacity BUT it required more knowledge, more perspective, and more learning than I had amassed prior to assuming the role.
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