Harvey Kornstein
Harvey Kornstein
District: Circuit Judge
Comments
Article
By Bill Rufty
The Ledger
Judge Harvey Kornstein placed 11th out of 28 circuit judges in this year's Ledger survey of lawyers.
That's one spot down from two years ago, but his overall ranking of 7.68 was higher than the overall ranking of 7.51 he received two years ago.
"Probably the most dedicated and conscientious judge on the bench," wrote one lawyer who filled out the survey.
"Like good wine, has gotten better," wrote another.
Kornstein's highest marks came in his professional conduct and activities, 7.86. All of his marks were consistent and closely spaced. His lowest score was 7.53 in written decisions.
Some lawyers this year wrote that he is too rigid in his rulings, which the judge considers a compliment.
"Works hard, but can be too rigid," wrote one.
There were also remarks that he was "consistent."
With 22 years on the county and circuit benches, Kornstein is not easily offended.
"I consider rigidity and consistency to be the same thing; what one considers a negative, others consider a positive," he said. "I think 'rigidity' means I go by the book, and there is no other way to do it, period.
"I have a true North, and I won't vary from that because that is following the letter of the law," he said.
Kornstein, 58, was an assistant state attorney when appointed for four months to an interim term as county judge in 1984. He was elected to the county bench in 1988 and served as county judge for 10 years. In 1998 he was elected to the circuit court.
He is up for election this year.
He currently serves as the administrative judge of the juvenile division which includes juvenile delinquency and juvenile dependency, abuse, neglect and abandonment.
Kornstein received his law degree from the University of Florida in 1976. He served in the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps 1977-1980.
He and his wife, Marci, have three adult children and live in Lakeland.
| 2010 Overall | Legal Ability | Communication Ability | Written Decisions | Professional Conduct |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.68 | 7.72 | 7.61 | 7.53 | 7.86 |
Comments
Always interesting to practice before him due to his creative insight into the law.
All over the place.
Maybe the best judge. Absolutely impartial. Hard worker. Maybe the most underrated of all.
Very good judge. Like good wine has gotten better.
Probably the most dedicated and conscientious judge on the bench.
Has always lagged in ability.
Very consistent.
He controls the horizontal and the vertical.
Works hard, but can be too rigid.
Needs to be more willing to acknowledge error and less pompous. Great with rules and procedures.
Works hard.
Filling space. Has no fire.
By the book, does his homework and is a great judge.
The most imrpoved judged. Very good on most things; still some rigidity.
Character counts. Kornstein has it.
Good man, nice person. Has a "comfort zone" that he rarely strays from. Although predictable, he is hard to sway.
Too slow in decision making.
Average
All over the place.
Maybe the best judge. Absolutely impartial. Hard worker. Maybe the most underrated of all.
Very good judge. Like good wine has gotten better.
Probably the most dedicated and conscientious judge on the bench.
Has always lagged in ability.
Very consistent.
He controls the horizontal and the vertical.
Works hard, but can be too rigid.
Needs to be more willing to acknowledge error and less pompous. Great with rules and procedures.
Works hard.
Filling space. Has no fire.
By the book, does his homework and is a great judge.
The most imrpoved judged. Very good on most things; still some rigidity.
Character counts. Kornstein has it.
Good man, nice person. Has a "comfort zone" that he rarely strays from. Although predictable, he is hard to sway.
Too slow in decision making.
Average
Article
By Bill Rufty
The Ledger
Judge Harvey Kornstein placed 11th out of 28 circuit judges in this year's Ledger survey of lawyers.
That's one spot down from two years ago, but his overall ranking of 7.68 was higher than the overall ranking of 7.51 he received two years ago.
"Probably the most dedicated and conscientious judge on the bench," wrote one lawyer who filled out the survey.
"Like good wine, has gotten better," wrote another.
Kornstein's highest marks came in his professional conduct and activities, 7.86. All of his marks were consistent and closely spaced. His lowest score was 7.53 in written decisions.
Some lawyers this year wrote that he is too rigid in his rulings, which the judge considers a compliment.
"Works hard, but can be too rigid," wrote one.
There were also remarks that he was "consistent."
With 22 years on the county and circuit benches, Kornstein is not easily offended.
"I consider rigidity and consistency to be the same thing; what one considers a negative, others consider a positive," he said. "I think 'rigidity' means I go by the book, and there is no other way to do it, period.
"I have a true North, and I won't vary from that because that is following the letter of the law," he said.
Kornstein, 58, was an assistant state attorney when appointed for four months to an interim term as county judge in 1984. He was elected to the county bench in 1988 and served as county judge for 10 years. In 1998 he was elected to the circuit court.
He is up for election this year.
He currently serves as the administrative judge of the juvenile division which includes juvenile delinquency and juvenile dependency, abuse, neglect and abandonment.
Kornstein received his law degree from the University of Florida in 1976. He served in the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps 1977-1980.
He and his wife, Marci, have three adult children and live in Lakeland.
District: Circuit Judge
Comments
Article
By ERIC PERA
THE LEDGER
Lawyers this year ranked Circuit Judge Harvey A. Kornstein higher in a Ledger survey than they have in past years.
Kornstein placed 10th out of 25 in the judges poll, tying fellow Circuit Judge J. Michael McCarthy with an overall score of 7.51 out of a possible 10.
Despite the higher ranking, Kornstein's overall score actually dropped a bit from the 7.64 he garnered in 2006, when he tied for 12th place.
In this year's poll, lawyers rated Kornstein highest for professional conduct, 7.75, followed by legal ability, 7.53, and communication, 7.38. He scored lowest for written decisions, 7.36.
"Seasoned, fair, logical, consistent, patient, knowledgeable of law," one lawyer wrote.
Another said Kornstein "follows the law precisely; he treats all the litigants fairly; never rude."
One lawyer described Kornstein as a "by the book" judge, and another said he's a judge "with a heart" who truly cares.
"Seems to have lost his zest for the job," was one of the more negative comments Kornstein received. He also garnered adjectives such as irascible and impatient.
Kornstein said the feedback was accurate and that his job is not about winning favor with lawyers.
"Popularity is not a virtue of being a good judge," he said. "I don't think any of them (the comments) are off the board. That's pretty much me."
Kornstein, 56, received his law degree from the University of Florida in 1976. He was elected to the county bench in 1988 and elected to the Circuit Court in 1998. Currently he's assigned to the Juvenile Division. His current term expires in 2010.
He and his wife, Marci, have three children.
| 2008 Overall | Legal Ability | Communication Ability | Written Decisions | Professional Conduct |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.51 | 7.53 | 7.38 | 7.36 | 7.75 |
Comments
Harvey A. Kornstein
By the book.
Do not represent an individual against HK; government always wins.
Does his job but still sees mostly black and white; no shades of gray for him.
Follows the law precisely; he treats all the litigants fairly; never rude; very good judge
Good dependency judge-not criminal.
Great person.
Knows and applies the law.
Seasoned, fair, logical, consistent, patient; knowledgeable of law.
Seems to has lost his zest for the job.
State judge with a heart; he truly cares and it shows.
Straight and narrow, controls the horizontal and the vertical; likes the job and what he can do with it; a JAG
attorney.
Tries very hard to do the right thing.
Understands children and family dynamics well; understands that the law affects people at the very level at which
they live.
Very astute judge.
Very astute judge.
Very good, but sometimes impatient, especially in jury trials.
By the book.
Do not represent an individual against HK; government always wins.
Does his job but still sees mostly black and white; no shades of gray for him.
Follows the law precisely; he treats all the litigants fairly; never rude; very good judge
Good dependency judge-not criminal.
Great person.
Knows and applies the law.
Seasoned, fair, logical, consistent, patient; knowledgeable of law.
Seems to has lost his zest for the job.
State judge with a heart; he truly cares and it shows.
Straight and narrow, controls the horizontal and the vertical; likes the job and what he can do with it; a JAG
attorney.
Tries very hard to do the right thing.
Understands children and family dynamics well; understands that the law affects people at the very level at which
they live.
Very astute judge.
Very astute judge.
Very good, but sometimes impatient, especially in jury trials.
Article
By ERIC PERA
THE LEDGER
Lawyers this year ranked Circuit Judge Harvey A. Kornstein higher in a Ledger survey than they have in past years.
Kornstein placed 10th out of 25 in the judges poll, tying fellow Circuit Judge J. Michael McCarthy with an overall score of 7.51 out of a possible 10.
Despite the higher ranking, Kornstein's overall score actually dropped a bit from the 7.64 he garnered in 2006, when he tied for 12th place.
In this year's poll, lawyers rated Kornstein highest for professional conduct, 7.75, followed by legal ability, 7.53, and communication, 7.38. He scored lowest for written decisions, 7.36.
"Seasoned, fair, logical, consistent, patient, knowledgeable of law," one lawyer wrote.
Another said Kornstein "follows the law precisely; he treats all the litigants fairly; never rude."
One lawyer described Kornstein as a "by the book" judge, and another said he's a judge "with a heart" who truly cares.
"Seems to have lost his zest for the job," was one of the more negative comments Kornstein received. He also garnered adjectives such as irascible and impatient.
Kornstein said the feedback was accurate and that his job is not about winning favor with lawyers.
"Popularity is not a virtue of being a good judge," he said. "I don't think any of them (the comments) are off the board. That's pretty much me."
Kornstein, 56, received his law degree from the University of Florida in 1976. He was elected to the county bench in 1988 and elected to the Circuit Court in 1998. Currently he's assigned to the Juvenile Division. His current term expires in 2010.
He and his wife, Marci, have three children.