Philadelphia Judicial Candidates Discuss Backgrounds, Judicial Philosophies and Threats to the Profession

Please click the links on the candidates’ names for the full Q&A. Those without a hyperlinked name have not provided responses. Responses to our Primary Election Q&A can be found here.

Court of Common Pleas

Brian McLaughlin

Currently serving as a Philadelphia judge after having been appointed to the role, McLaughlin is now seeking a full term on the bench. A former McCullough, McLaughlin, Mincarelli & McCloskey partner, who has experience in both criminal and civil litigation, he is running as a Democrat.

Chesley Lightsey

A veteran prosecutor, Lightsey has been at the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office for more than 15 years, where she has headed the homicide and non-fatal shootings unit. She is running as a Democrat.

Damaris Garcia

Garcia, who is running as a Democrat, has worked for a number of insurance defense firms, as well as in-house for insurance companies. Before working in her current role at AIG, she worked at a personal injury firm.

Jessica Brown

Brown is a labor and employment attorney with Willig, Williams & Davidson and previously worked in the U.S. Department of Labor in its Solicitor’s Office and the Defender Association of Philadelphia. She running as a Democrat and is recommended by the Philadelphia Bar Association.

John Padova

Currently serving for the second time as a Gov. Tom Wolf-appointed judge in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Padova is highly recommended by the Philadelphia Bar Association. As an attorney, Padova handled personal injury and workers’ compensation matters and has served as of counsel at Messa & Associates.

Kay Kyungsun Yu

Yu, a self-employed arbitrator and mediator, is highly recommended by the Philadelphia Bar Association. She has worked in employment law in private and public sectors. She served as the voter protection director of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party and as an appointee to the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations.

Natasha Taylor-Smith

Taylor-Smith began her legal career as a Philadelphia Public Defender for nearly nine years. Since then, she has opened her own firm, practicing criminal, family, and personal injury law. In 2017 Taylor-Smith was appointed Federal Defender for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Natasha is highly recommended by the Philadelphia Bar Association. Taylor-Smith is running on the Democratic ticket.

Samantha Williams

Williams began her legal career at the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, later moving to the Philadelphia City Council, where she wrote laws to give residents eviction protections, career opportunities, and more. Williams is recommended by the Philadelphia Bar Association and is running on the Democratic ticket.

Tamika Washington

Washington was appointed to serve on the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas in 2022. She has spent her career working in civil, criminal, and family courts, representing clients in the areas of civil rights, real estate, and estate law. Washington is recommended by the Philadelphia Bar Association and is running on the Democratic ticket.

James J. Eisenhower

Eisenhower is of counsel at Dilworth Paxson. He is a white-collar lawyer and former federal prosecutor with government experience that includes a stint as a White House fellow in President Bill Clinton’s administration and chair of several state organizations under Gov. Ed Rendell, according to his firm bio. The Philadelphia Bar Association rated him “highly recommended”.

Rajinderpal Sandher

A 2013 graduate of Western Michigan University Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Sandher is a family lawyer who founded the firm Sandher & Lehman, according to his campaign website.

Elvin Ross III 

Ross is the founder of five-attorney business law firm Legis Group, which is also the former firm of Philadelphia Judges Tamika Washington and Nicholas Kamau. Ross previously served as an associate in Morgan, Lewis & Bockius’s business and finance practice group and is a graduate of Texas Southern University—Thurgood Marshall School of Law.

MUNICIPAL COURT

Colleen McIntyre Osborne

Running as a Democrat, Osborne has worked as an assistant district attorney in Montgomery County and Philadelphia and as a JAG lawyer in the U.S. Army Reserve. Currently, she works for the School District of Philadelphia.

Rania Major

Major has been working at her own general litigation practice since 1997. With 35 years of litigation experience, Major has practiced in all four divisions of the Municipal Court. She is running on the Republican ticket. She was rated not recommended by the Philadelphia Bar Association.

Barbara Previdi Thomson

Thomson has been a solo attorney in Philadelphia since 2001. Recently, she said, she has worked for the City of Philadelphia on projects including implementing the city ID card, the Hub of Hope and helping those seeking asylum after being bussed to Philadelphia from Texas. She is running as a Democrat. She received a recommended rating from the Philadelphia Bar Association.