Michael D. Bustamante
Court of Appeals Judge
Statewide
Year: 2010
Evaluation: Judge Bustamante received positive ratings from all of the populations that were surveyed for this evaluation. Attorneys rate him positively for conducting himself in a manner free from impropriety and for demonstrating appropriate demeanor. The court staff and his fellow appellate judges rate him highly for his knowledge and application of the law, for working effectively and cooperatively with other court personnel, and for rendering opinions without regard to possible public criticism.
Experience & Education: Judge Michael Bustamante was appointed to the Court of Appeals in 1994 and was first elected in November 1996. He has been on the Court of Appeals for 16 years. Prior to being a judge, he was in private practice for 20 years. Judge Bustamante has been active in community and professional legal organizations throughout his career. Judge Bustamante received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of New Mexico.
PERCENTAGE THAT AGREE OR DISAGREE THAT THE JUDGE EXHIBITS POSITIVE QUALITIES IN EACH CATEGORY *
| Attorneys (n=238, 45.2% Response Rate) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Agree | Partly Agree/ Partly Disagree | Disagree |
| Exhibits Integrity | 91% | 6% | 3% |
| Fair and Impartial | 76% | 17% | 6% |
| Knowledgeable of Law | 76% | 17% | 7% |
| Respects Court Employees | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Appropriate Demeanor | 90% | 5% | 5% |
| Timeliness of Rulings | 77% | 20% | 3% |
| Handles Ongoing Workload | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Court Staff (n=43, 38.1% Response Rate) | |||
| Category | Agree | Partly Agree/ Partly Disagree | Disagree |
| Exhibits Integrity | 86% | 9% | 5% |
| Fair and Impartial | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Knowledgeable of Law | 98% | 3% | 0% |
| Respects Court Employees | 85% | 10% | 5% |
| Appropriate Demeanor | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Timeliness of Rulings | 95% | 0% | 5% |
| Handles Ongoing Workload | 95% | 5% | 0% |
| Appellate Judges (n=13, 88% Response Rate) | |||
| Category | Agree | Partly Agree/ Partly Disagree | Disagree |
| Exhibits Integrity | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Fair and Impartial | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Knowledgeable of Law | 99% | 1% | 0% |
| Respects Court Employees | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Appropriate Demeanor | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Timeliness of Rulings | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Handles Ongoing Workload | 100% | 0% | 0% |
* On the tables above, the "Agree" columns are comprised of the strongly agree and agree responses. Similarly, the "Disagree" columns are comprised of the strongly disagree and disagree responses. The combined percentage of "Agree", "Disagree", and "Partly Agree/Partly Disagree" for each category may not equal 100% due to rounding error. "N/A" indicates that the category is "not applicable" because some populations were not asked certain questions.
PERCENTAGE THAT RECOMMEND THE JUDGE BE RETAINED OR NOT BE RETAINED IN OFFICE. ‡
‡ On the charts above, the "Retain" columns are comprised of the strongly recommend retain and somewhat recommend retain responses. Similarly, the "Do Not Retain" columns are comprised of the strongly recommend not retain and somewhat recommend not retain responses.