huck Vogel is the Second District's version of Chief Justice Ronald George. Vogel is a smart, centrist Republican with good leadership abilities, which is why he was made the Second District's administrative presiding justice a few years ago.
Vogel's Salka v. Dean Homes of Beverly Hills18 Cal.App.4th 1145, sent shivers through the civil defense bar when it created an exception to the rule against emotional distress damages for homes that have serious construction defects. The Supreme Court seemed unsure what to make of it, granting review and then dismissing it seven months later. Vogel also went out on a limb in Leone v. Division of Medical Quality, 57 Cal.App.4th 1240, when he flouted a Supreme Court precedent on the right to appeal because only three of the seven justices had signed the lead opinion. (The Supreme Court has moved to review the case.)
Those cases seem uncharacteristic, though, of an otherwise careful, cautious jurist. Despite publishing 38 opinions in the last two years, Vogel has seen none depublished.
Vogel, a partner for many years at Sidley & Austin, was a popular State Bar president in the early 1990s. He seems far more interested in civil issues than criminal: Only four of his 38 published opinions are from criminal cases.
Division Four, over which he presides, is one of the slower at processing appeals on the Second District, with 147 days from briefing to decision for civil cases, 90 days for criminal.
Vogel was confirmed by a 67-33 percent in the 1994 election.
POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS: Vogel contributed $7,500 to various statewide candidates during the early 1990s: $2,000 to Pete Wilson's 1990 gubernatorial campaign, $1,500 to Dan Lungren's 1990 AG campaign, $1,500 to Willie Brown's Assembly campaigns in 1990 and 1991 (Brown was a key vote on State Bar dues bills), $1,200 to Republican Pat Nolan's Assembly campaigns, $500 to Republican state Senate candidate Frank Hill, $250 to Republican state Senate candidate Carol Rowan, $200 to Republican state Senate candidate Gilbert Marguth, and $100 to Democratic Assembly candidate Kathleen Torres.
