This is the thirty-sixth of our Court Times articles that highlight up close and personal a member of the Indiana Judiciary. Hamilton Superior Court Judge Gail Bardach is our judge featured in this issue.
Judge Bardach graduated from Indiana University at Bloomington in 1972, and the IU McKinney School of Law in 1975. She served as Deputy Prosecuting Attorney in Marion County, then as Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, before being fortunate enough to be able to “retire” for ten years to begin raising their children. She returned to the active legal profession in 1993, to serve as the judge of the Carmel City Court for almost 14 years before being elected to and assuming her current position in Noblesville in 2007.
Judge Bardach presides over a criminal docket that includes misdemeanors and lower level felonies, except for the drug court cases, which can be any level felony. She handles traffic offenses, small claims cases, and all manner of other civil proceedings. She has first responsibility for all of the protective order cases in Hamilton County.
Bardach has served on, and chaired, the Judicial Conference Community Relations Committee. She is currently a member of the Problem Solving Courts Committee. She reports that she enjoyed very much and has completed the Graduate Program for Judges in 2012. She is a member of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals.
She has been married 42 years to her husband, Lee, whom she met when they were both undergraduates at Indiana University. They have proudly raised together three adult children: Jeff, an Emmy award winning TV news and sports producer in Oklahoma City; Carey, who teaches and is a reading specialist at Indian Creek Elementary School in Lawrence Township (Indianapolis); and Evan, who is the Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney in Crawford County.
What do you like most and least about being a trial court judge?
I am very appreciative of having been given the opportunity to positively impact people’s lives, especially those in our drug court. Among my pet peeves, on the other hand, are late lawyers, ill-prepared lawyers, last minute continuances, and the inability often to move cases quickly enough to dispense what many consider to be timely justice.
What was your major in college and why did you decide to study law?
My major in college was sociology, though I started at IU as a biology major, before realizing how much I enjoyed logically constructing and anticipating both sides of issue arguments. That is what made the legal profession a natural for me.
What would you do if you were not a judge?
At this point and age in my life I would be a volunteer for several worthy causes and travel the world as much as possible.
Who are the people you most admire?
The people I most admire are good teachers who teach well. While I have never had the patience to be teaching in a classroom as more than a guest speaker, I think that we judges have a wonderful opportunity to teach life lessons too, and wisely, from the bench.
What are your hobbies or favorite leisure activities?
My hobbies and other leisure activities include reading, traveling, and very amateur photography, mostly landscape. I also like to recreationally walk and bike.
What are your favorite books, and have you read any recently, or are reading now, that you would recommend?
My favorite book ever is The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. My favorite authors are David McCullouch, Douglas Brinkley and Doris Kearns Goodwin. Usually I read three or four books at a time. Some of my recently read books that I would highly recommend are: Sisters in Law by Linda Hirshman, Jacksonland by Steve Inskeep, and The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown.
Where did you grow up and how would you describe your childhood?
I was born in Evansville, but grew up in Park Ridge, Illinois, a near northwest suburb of Chicago. I was the second of five children and quite the tomboy, trying always to keep up with my older brother, in sports and other antics. I had a very happy childhood with great parents and three wonderful sisters and the one brother.
Do you have a favorite quote(s)?
One of my favorites is one that I will borrow from a successful drug court participant, who quoted Oscar Wilde: “Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.”
Where is your favorite vacation spot?
I don’t have just one favorite vacation spot. I love to travel Europe and our national parks, but I also very much enjoy family time on and at the beaches of Hilton Head Island.
Do you have a favorite meal, recipe, and restaurant?
We dine out often and have many restaurants that we enjoy, but my favorite meal is almost anything prepared by a very good friend of mine who is an incredibly excellent cook.