Maurine Laney is announcing her bid for re-election to the office of Magistrate Judge Grant Division 1 in Silver City.

Judge Laney began her career in the Magistrate Court in 1992 as a Court Clerk and worked her way up through the ranks to become Court Manager in 2004 where she remained until her election to office in 2011. With more than 25 years of experience, she has held every position offered in the Magistrate Court. Her extensive knowledge of the inner-workings of the court, combined with her working knowledge of the state statutes and judicial rules of procedure, has made her a strong asset to the magistrate court.

Throughout two terms in office, Judge Laney has continued her education by attending numerous trainings, workshops, and courses offered by the Judicial Education Center of New Mexico and the National Judicial College. During her first year in office, she was elected to the New Mexico Magistrate Judges Association Board of Directors and has served on the board for the last 7 years. Judge Laney was selected to be a member of the Judicial Education Center’s training team in 2011 and has taught a number of courses covering such topics as Advanced Civil Case Procedures, Landlord Tenant Issues, Handling Domestic Violence Cases, New Judges Training, and Ethics.

Since taking office in 2011, Judge Laney has been appointed by the Supreme Court of New Mexico to sit on the New Mexico Judicial Employee’s Personnel Rules Committee and the Odyssey Judge’s User Group Committee, which establishes and develops court procedures in conjunction with the state-wide automated case management system. In 2015, the Supreme Court appointed Judge Laney to serve on the Judicial Standards Commission. This commission hears complaints and cases brought against all levels of judges in New Mexico for rules and ethics violations, and makes recommendations to the Supreme Court for disciplinary actions as may be needed.

Judge Laney handles one of the largest caseloads of any other individual Magistrate in the state, with a yearly average between 5000 and 6000 cases. She is a firm believer that the Magistrate Court is the “People’s Court”. Laney has said, “A judge must have a strong sense of ethics, conduct themselves with integrity, and be accessible to the people, no matter how busy he or she may be. Judges are meant to be public servants and must treat everyone coming before them with dignity and respect. Good judges base their decisions on the evidence presented in court, applied with knowledge of the law, and based in a fair administration of justice. Serving as Magistrate has been one of the biggest honors of my life. If re-elected, I intend to continue to do everything I can to serve this community to the best of my ability.”

Judge Laney is a lifelong resident of Grant County, born and raised in Bayard by her parents, Dickie and Bitty Benjamin. She currently resides in Silver City with Vern Laney, her husband of 25 years, where they’ve raised two children, Garrett and Shelby Laney. Laney is an active member of the community, member of the Grant County Health Council, Grant County Youth Advisory Committee, Silver City Kiwanis Club, and avid supporter of youth sports in Grant County.