Daniel Biles

Daniel Biles
Kansas Supreme Court Justice
Incumbent
Assumed office January 7, 2009
Appointed by	Kathleen Sebelius
Preceded by	Kay McFarland
Personal details
Born	August 12, 1952 (1952-08-12) (age 59) El Dorado, Kansas
Spouse(s)	Amy McCart
Profession	Attorney, Judge

Daniel Biles is a Justice on the Kansas Supreme Court. Biles was appointed on January 7, 2009, by Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius to replace retiring Chief Justice Kay McFarland.

Early life and education

Biles who is a native Kansan, graduated with his bachelor’s degree in journalism from Kansas State University in 1975 and his juris doctorate from Washburn University School of Law in 1980.^[1]

Legal career

Before becoming a practicing attorney, Biles was a reporter for the Associated Press Kansas Division from 1975 to 1980. After graduating from Law School, Biles joined the Kansas Attorney General's Office from 1980 to 1985 before entering into private practice work as a private practice attorney licensed in the State of Kansas.^[1]

Biles, in 1985, became a partner of the law firm of Gates, Biles & Shields, P.A., which is based in Overland Park, KS. Biles focused his legal practice in the areas of Commercial Litigation, Education Law, Administrative Law, Appellate Practice, Real Estate Transaction, Employment Law, Transportation, Municipal Financing, Civil Rights, First Amendment Cases, and Media Law.

Biles while in private practice work was active in political endeavors as he was a member of the Kansas Turnpike Authority Board and also on the Kansas State Board of Education.^[1]

Kansas Supreme Court

Biles was one of three candidates recommended by the Kansas Supreme Court Nominating Commission to Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius. On January 7, 2009, Biles was appointed by Governor Sebelius; the other two choices recommended by the Kansas Supreme Court Nominating Commission were the Chief Judge of the Douglas County Court Robert Fairchild and Kansas Court of Appeals Judge Tom Malone.^[2]

Possible Questions of Biles Appointment to the Supreme Court

The appointment of Daniel Biles has been met with a firestorm of criticism from many judicial conservatives over his lack of judicial experience and also from many ethics watchdog groups over his campaign contributions to Governor Kathleen Sebelius and the Kansas Democratic Party.

Transparency records from KanView show that during the 2008 Fiscal year that Biles was the recipient of over $360,000 of contacts for legal representation for the Kansas Department of Education, Kansas State Lottery, and the Kansas Department of Transportation.^[3] The amount that Biles has received from Kansas state contracts along with Biles and his wife and other partners in his law firm giving very generous donations to Governor Kathleen Sebelius and also other prominent candidates, including Barack Obama for President, raise the question if Biles received the appointment on the basis of being a financially generous donor to Kathleen Sebelius.

It has been noted by the Kansas City Star that Governor Sebelius and her husband have been friends of Biles for more than three decades, starting when the Governor's husband was an attorney for the Topeka School District and Biles was an Associated Press reporter. Sebelius has said that she has relied on Biles for legal advice since becoming governor. What was noted that Biles during the 2002 Governor's Campaign gave over $1,000 to Sebelius and his wife gave over $1200 from 2002 to 2006 raising the question if patronage in financial terms to Governor Sebelius played a role in his appointment over sound judicial experience.^[4]

Associations and Memberships

Biles is a member of the National Council of State Education Attorneys, the Kansas Bar Association; the Kansas Association for Justice, and the Johnson County Bar Association. In addition to his work in the legal community, Biles serves as the director of Community Living Opportunities, Inc., which is a not-for-profit organization serving more than 370 children and adults with severe developmental disabilities specializing in residential, day programs, and case management in Kansas.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Office of Governor Kathleen Sebelius" Daniel Biles appointed to the Kansas Supreme Court, January 7, 2009
2. ^ "Kansas City Star", Biles appointed to the Final Three for the Supreme Court, November 14, 2008
3. ^ "Kansas Meadowlark" Bile's Contract Expidentures, January 7, 2009
4. ^ "Kansas Meadowlark" Kathleen Sebelius picks donor for Kansas Supreme Court, January 7, 2009

External links

• http://www.kscourts.org
• http://www.kansas.gov

Persondata
Name	Biles, Daniel
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	August 12, 1952
Place of birth	El Dorado, Kansas
Date of death
Place of death