Hoping to piggyback on the success of his teenage daughter’s victory last year in becoming the ninth-grade class president, Islander Michael Bond is running for the state Supreme Court. So far, he is one of two candidates who have stated their intention to run for one of three seats up for election this fall.

The Island attorney, who specializes in business law, mainly practicing construction litigation, said he is seeking a seat on the state’s high bench to help change the recent course of the court. Bond is running against Justice Mary Fairchild, who is seeking her second six-year term. Bond said he thinks her decisions and opinions have been “consistently wrong.”

Bond, a former judge advocate in the U.S. Marine Corps, said he sees the Supreme Court continuously ruling against the individual’s right to privacy and is putting the interests of business and government above the people.

“The privacy issue is the most important in this day with the federal government snooping through our e-mail and nabbing up citizens in the street,” said Bond. “A fair characterization of Fairchild is that her record shows she believes that states — or the government in general — have sovereignty over the people.”

Noting his political science degree from the University of Irvine, Calif., Bond stated that he is 180 degrees apart from Fairchild on the theory of people and government.

“The Constitution places the power with the people,” he said. “People are to be protected by the government.”

Bond said court opinions have also been undermining the public initiative process, a tool he said empowers people in government. However, the high court is often too quick to strike down initiatives passed by the people, he said, citing the repeal of the property tax initiative last year.

“The court struck that down, stating that the initiative was mischaracterized on the ballot. But the pamphlet made it clear they were voting on a one percent annual increase. [The supreme court] overruled the will of the people.”

Bond and his opponent both attended law school at Gonzaga University. While Bond has been criticized for seeking a seat on the supreme court despite having never served as a judge before, he said that he has plenty of experience as an arbitrator. He is a registered fellow with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

More importantly, he said he wants to bring change to the court by bringing his experience from the other side of the bench. His tenure in private practice is the experience the current court lacks, he said.

“Several current justices have no real experience,” said Bond. “They’ve never worked in private practice. Look at Fairchild — she worked for the attorney general’s office and then went straight to the bench. She’s worked for the government her entire career.

“The court needs lawyers with significant experience in private practice, those who know what happens in the real world. Not the world of theory.”

The father of two MIHS students, Anna and Eddie, Bond has lived on the Island with his wife, Marianne, since 1982. They reside in the East Seattle neighborhood.

To read more about Bond, visit his blog at www.inbondsopinion.blogspot.com.