Borys Krawczeniuk, Times Tribune

Attorney Victor P. Stabile believes he’s the best qualified candidate to become the state’s next Superior Court judge because of his 30 years experience as a lawyer, his years as a township supervisor and his belief in representing struggling clients for free.

“I understand what the courts do; I know what good and bad judges are; I know what cases mean to people, how they affect people,” Mr. Stabile, 54, he said.

Mr. Stabile, a Republican from Middlesex Twp. in Cumberland County, faces Allegheny County Judge David N. Wecht, a Democrat, in the Nov. 8 election.

The Pennsylvania Bar Association gave Mr. Stabile its “recommended” rating.

“His writing skills are strong and his experience handling cases before the appellate courts is solid,” the bar association evaluation says. “He has an exemplary record of pro bono service, and he has also served his community as a member of his township’s board of supervisors.”

Mr. Stabile works for the Harrisburg office of the statewide law firm, Dilworth Paxson. He joined the firm in 1987 after an exodus of lawyers who followed Robert P. Casey Sr. of Scranton, a Dilworth partner, to state government when he became governor.

For several years in the mid-1980s, Mr. Stabile was a state deputy attorney general in the office’s trial division, defending the state in civil cases. Earlier this year, he resigned as chairman of the Cumberland County Republican Party to run for judge, but remains a township supervisor.

Unlike his opponent, Mr. Stabile said he has extensive experience as a lawyer before appellate courts.

“I’ve always viewed the legal profession as protecting individual rights,” he said. “Judges do not legislate from the bench. Judges are to apply the law as it’s written. If you want to legislate, run for the Legislature.”

He touted his legal fights for clean water in Cumberland County and a widow seeking her military husband’s benefits and his willingness to help victims of recent flooding.

Mr. Stabile said he has no problem with judicial candidates taking contributions from lawyers, except when a contribution is so large that it could look improper.

He was unsure about whether judges should be appointed by governors based on merit or elected, but said in elections as least “everyone can run for judge.” Even merit selection carries an element of politics because governors choose, he said.