Saint Paul – Governor Tim Pawlenty today announced the appointment of Daniel K. Lew to the Commission on Judicial Selection.

Lew, of Duluth, is the managing attorney of the Sixth Judicial District Public Defender’s office in Duluth, a position he has held since 2006. He began his career as an assistant Sixth Judicial District Public Defender in Duluth in 1996, and also was an assistant Ramsey County Public Defender before returning to Duluth in 2006. Lew earned his juris doctorate degree from Hamline University School of Law in St. Paul in 1995. He clerked for Hennepin County District Court Judge Tony Leung, as well as in the criminal division of the Minneapolis City Attorney’s office while in law school. Lew earned his bachelor’s degree from Queens College, City University of New York. He is a member and past president of the Minnesota Chapter of the National Asian Pacific Bar Association, and has served as a board member of the Minnesota Ombudsperson for Asian Pacific American Families and the Minneapolis Civil Rights Commission. Lew replaces Leonardo Castro, who resigned earlier this year, as an at-large attorney member on the Commission on Judicial Selection to complete a four-year term that expires on January 3, 2011.

The Commission on Judicial Selection solicits judicial candidates, evaluates applicants and recommends three to five finalists to the governor for district court and Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals vacancies that occur during the term of a judge. The commission consists of 49 members; 27 appointed by the Governor, and 22 by the Supreme Court.