Judge Jacy J. Hurst will appear on the Tuesday, Nov. 3 ballot in a nonpartisan retention vote for Kansas Court of Appeals Position 13. Voters statewide, including those in Johnson County, will decide whether Hurst keeps her seat on the appellate court.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly appointed Hurst to the Court of Appeals on Feb. 11, 2021, to fill the vacancy left by Judge Melissa Standridge, who was elevated to the Kansas Supreme Court, according to Hurst's Wikipedia entry. The Kansas Senate confirmed her March 23, 2021. Upon her confirmation, Hurst became the first woman of color to serve on the Kansas Court of Appeals.
Her current term runs from January 2023 to January 2027, according to the Kansas Courts website.
Candidate information
- Office sought: Kansas Court of Appeals Judge, Position 13 (retention)
- Party: Nonpartisan
- Hometown: Lawrence, Kansas
- Education: Bachelor's degree in business administration, University of Kansas, 2002; juris doctor, University of Kansas School of Law, 2006
Hurst is originally from Lawrence, Kansas, and lives there with her family, according to KU Law Magazine.
Experience and public service
Before joining the bench, Hurst worked as an attorney at Stinson Leonard Street LLP from 2007 to 2014, according to BallotReady profile data. She then served as general counsel and chief compliance officer at Swope Health Services from 2014 to 2017. She was a partner at the law firm Kutak Rock from 2017 until her 2021 appointment.
Hurst has also served as an adjunct professor at Washburn University School of Law since 2020, according to BallotReady. She provided pro bono legal services to individuals in criminal and family law cases, according to her Wikipedia entry.
Her community involvement includes serving as a board member and later board chair of the Douglas County United Way. She was a member of the Kansas Board of Law Examiners in 2020, according to the Kansas Courts website. Professional memberships listed on that site include the Kansas Bar Association, Kansas Women Attorneys Association, National Association of Women Lawyers and Greater Kansas City Society of Health Care Attorneys.
While at the University of Kansas School of Law, Hurst was a KU Law Review staff member, Student Bar Association third-year class vice president and Black Law Student Association treasurer, according to the Kansas Courts website.
On the issues
No issue responses from Hurst were available for this profile.
Candidate information was drawn from the Kansas Courts website, KU Law Magazine, BallotReady and Wikipedia. No candidate questionnaire responses were available at the time of publication.
