"The Robing Room: DC State Judges

Hon. Neal E. Kravitz	See Rating Details
Judge Superior
	See Comments

Attorney Average Rating: 6.0 - 7 rating(s) Non-Attorney Average Rating: 1.0 - 1 rating(s)	Please send me alerts on this judge E-mail Address:

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Only items marked with (*) are averaged into the displayed overall rating.

General Rating Criteria

* Temperament		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Scholarship		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Industriousness		(1=Not at all industrious,10=Highly industrious)
* Ability to Handle Complex Litigation		(1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Punctuality		(1=Chronically Late,10=Always on Time)
* General Ability to Handle Pre-Trial Matters		(1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
* General Ability as a Trial Judge		(1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
Flexibility In Scheduling		(1=Completely Inflexible,10=Very Flexible)

Criminal Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Criminal Litigation		(1=Demonstrates Bias,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
General Inclination Regarding Bail		(1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
Involvement in Plea Discussions		(1=Not at all Involved, 10=Very Involved)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Pretrial Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Trial Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Sentencing Stage		(1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)

Civil Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Civil Litigation		(1=Not at all Evenhanded,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Involvement in Settlement Discussions		(1=Not at all Involved,10=Very Involved)
General Inclination		(1=Pro-defendant, 10=Pro-plaintiff)

Comments

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What others have said about Hon. Neal E. Kravitz

Comments

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: DC636
Rating:6.3

Comments:
Kravitz is one of the smarter judges on the Superior Court. He follows the law (which is better than you can say about some of his peers). But he can be cranky and short with the litigants in his courtroom. And even though he follows the law, if he has an inclination one way or the other, he will push as hard as he can within the bounds of his discretion to get to the result he prefers.

In my experience Kravitz was inexcusably slow. He sat on a summary judgment motion for more than a year before holding oral argument and then held us up for another year on a subsequent motion for reconsideration. Civil Track II cases are supposed to go from complaint to decisions on dispositive motions in about 6 months and get to a pretrial conference in about 9. His delays pushed ours to nearly 4 years before we reached pretrial.

Other

Comment #: DC612
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
When it comes to women and abuse, this judge is highly biased, especially in the custody setting. Check out Appeal No. 19-FM-1256

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: DC579
Rating:1.0

Comments:
I used to have faith in him. But not anymore. He unlawfully used unreported opinions to decide a case, in which there were published opinions that spoke the exact opposite. This was largely due to listening to an incompetent colleague who told him to rule a certain way. This caused unnecessary harm to litigants, requiring them to spend monies appealing his erroneous decision.

Other

Comment #: DC337
Rating:1.0

Comments:
The Great American Pants Suit:

D.C. Superior Court Judge Neal Kravitz was the judge for the "The Great American Pants Suit," and proved himself by showing that the legal system in Washington, D.C. is totally screwed up.

The case has garnered considerable international attention. BBC News quoted Chris Manning, attorney for the Chung family [owners of the dry cleaners], as saying that the experience for the Chungs has become the "American nightmare" —an ironic reference to the American Dream. Fortune magazine listed the case in its "101 Dumbest Moments in Business" of 2007. Cracked.com listed the case as "Exhibit 1" in its 2008 article "9 Insane Cases that Prove the U.S. Legal System Is Screwed."

On July 24, 2007, the American Tort Reform Association and the Institute for Legal Reform of the United States Chamber of Commerce hosted a fundraiser for the Chungs to help pay their attorneys' fees that reported having raised up to $64,000. The Chungs say they have received close to $100,000 from supporters to cover their attorneys' fees and lost business.

Judge Kravitz you are doing a really great job! Keep up the good work, screwing over peoples' lives and making the D.C. Superior Court the laughing stock of the world.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: DC136
Rating:10.0

Comments:
Judge Kravitz is smart, focused on efficient case management and fair resolution, and a pleasure in the courtroom.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: DC126
Rating:8.4

Comments:
Probably a slight defense bias. Overall a good judge. I like another poster am surprised by negative comments though I could see how the judge's confidence could come accross wrong in the right situation.

Anyone that would rate this judge as anything but very good hasn't had the experience of trying a case before a bad judge.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: DC89
Rating:9.1

Comments:
Surprised at other comments. Thought he was a good, serious judge. Did his homework even during the trial.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: DC70
Rating:5.5

Comments:
Sarcastic from the bench. After ruling against me on a legal point, I leaned over to speak with my client and he asked me what I said. I had to remind him that my comment was to my client and none of his business. It would be a sad comment for DC if he gets the seat on the DC Court of Appeals.

Prosecutor

Comment #: DC69
Rating:1.8

Comments:
Very biased towards defense.