Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 24, 1994 TAG: 9402240186
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: New River Valley bureau
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Ray Grubbs, a general district judge since 1988, will take over the bench for retiring 27th Circuit Judge Kenneth Devore on March 1. Colin Gibb, a Giles County lawyer, was appointed to replace Circuit Judge Dow Owens of Pulaski.
When Grubbs came home Wednesday evening, friends and family were there waiting to celebrate.
"The news got out very quickly," Grubbs said in a brief telephone interview. "It was a surprise."
Grubbs, 50, will follow in the footsteps of Devore, his former law partner of 10 years. "It gives one a sense of continuity," Grubbs said, and of "big shoes to fill."
Grubbs once was part of a three-way race for 27th Circuit seat, but Juvenile and Domestic Relations Judge Patrick Graybeal, one of the other candidates for the endorsement, asked the county bar associations to make a unanimous endorsement to Richmond. Their choice was Grubbs.
"Obviously, I'm delighted about it. It's just a wonderful opportunity to serve," said Grubbs, who will be moving his office up to the fourth floor of the Montgomery County Courthouse.
Grubbs said he received excellent, bipartisan support from the New River Valley's General Assembly delegation. "I'm very, very grateful for that," he said. "We're very fortunate, we have a top-notch group of legislators."
The district covers the counties of Montgomery, Floyd, Giles, Pulaski, Wythe, Bland, Grayson and Carroll, plus the cities of Galax and Radford. Devore presided mainly over cases in Montgomery and Floyd counties.
Grubbs was a substitute judge primarily in Roanoke before taking the full-time judgeship. Before that, he practiced law in Christiansburg, originally sharing a practice with Devore in 1969, then working on his own.
Grubbs said once he takes his eight-year seat on the Circuit bench, a vacancy will be declared in the General District Court, starting the appointment process for that seat.
John Buck of Radford and John Quigley of Christiansburg are the contenders.
Gibb, 44, of Blacksburg will take the seat of Owens, who generally presides in Pulaski and Giles counties, on July 1.
A partner in the firm of Warren, Gibb and Scheid, Gibb's competition for the seat was Michael Barbour, a lawyer with the Pulaski firm of Gilmer Sadler Ingram Sutherland & Hutton. Gibb is a graduate of the T.C. Williams School of Law in Richmond.
Gibb had endorsements from most of the county bar associations. He promised that if he became judge, he would have an open-door policy and would seek out lawyers' suggestions for improving courtroom practices.
In a telephone interview, Gibb said that after he was nominated, he met with lawyers who expressed various questions and ideas about improving the system.
"I told them I would try to address their concerns. I'll see if we can put our heads together and come up with some solutions to scheduling and various other items."
Gibb, who got the news this afternoon from a legislative services staff member, said he didn't want to celebrate much until his entire family was together.
Staff writers Brian Kelley, Kathy Loan, Madelyn Rosenberg and Lisa Applegate contributed information to this story.
Keywords:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1994
by CNB