Boise, Idaho – Governor Brad Little announced today his appointment of Joseph Borton as District Judge to the Fourth Judicial District.

Borton is a trial attorney with twenty-seven years of litigation experience in trial on a wide array of civil and criminal matters. He is the managing partner at Borton-Lakey Law & Policy in Meridian.  Borton is the current President of the Meridian City Council where he has served for fourteen years.  An active community member, Borton has served as president of the West Ada Education Foundation, the Meridian Chamber of Commerce, and as chairman of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Southwest Idaho where he was also a youth mentor for eleven years. Borton is a local graduate of Boise High School, who earned his Economics Degree with honors from the University of Oregon and his juris doctorate from the University of Idaho College of Law. In 2019 Borton was sworn in for admission to appear before the United States Supreme Court.

“I am honored and grateful for this appointment,” Borton said. “Our District has been blessed with exceptional judges and court staff for many years and I am committed to doing my part to uphold that long tradition of excellence.”

The position Borton will fill is chambered in Ada County. He will fill a vacancy created by the retirement of District Judge Samuel Hoagland. The Fourth Judicial District encompasses Ada, Boise, Elmore, and Valley Counties.

Idaho Code 1-2101, et seq., addresses how judicial vacancies in the Idaho Supreme Court, Idaho Court of Appeals, and District Courts are filled. The Idaho Judicial Council submits a list of at least three qualified candidates to Governor Little for appointment, consistent with Idaho law.