At a formal investiture ceremony earlier this month, friends, family, and colleagues gathered to welcome Judge Janet Calkins Bostwick to her new seat on the Pima County Superior Court. Governor Ducey appointed Bostwick in July to fill the seat left vacant by the retirement of Judge Stephen Villareal. “I want to express appreciation for the time and commitment the Pima County Commission on Trial Court Appointments and the Governor’s Office diligently devote to the judicial merit selection process,” said Bostwick in an interview ahead of the ceremony. “I am very excited to start, and I welcome the challenge to rise to the honor and serve our court and Pima County to the best of my ability.”
Bostwick’s path to the bench began in Tucson. “My parents moved here from Iowa in the 1950s, drawn by sunshine and what my mother called the ‘cow town’ of Tucson. They raised me, my brother, and sisters — the four Calkin kids — in a red brick house on Alvernon, which they rented when they arrived and lived in the rest of their lives,” Bostwick said. She attended Peter Howell Elementary School, and Mansfield Middle School, and later enrolled at Tucson High School, where her love of music led her to join the marching band. “My brother, sister Robin, and I were Badgers at the same time, and football game Fridays we rocked the red band uniforms and big tall hats,” Bostwick recalled. “Being raised in Tucson was a wonderful experience.”
After high school, Bostwick hung up her spiffy band uniform but continued to pursue her passion for music. She earned a music scholarship to the University of Arizona, and studied music, American history, and English. When she arrived on campus, she wasn’t set on a career in law. “Actually, the job I wanted as a little girl was to work at the Shell gas station on our corner, conveniently next to Dairy Queen,” said Bostwick. Her coursework at UA got her interested in law. “I think two things drew me to law school: an interest in law and justice as part of American history, and wanting to use writing and the power of words in whatever I did,” said Bostwick.
Bostwick followed that interest in law to the Arizona College of Law. There, she was a member of the Arizona Law Review, participated in moot court, and met Reese, her husband of thirty-two years. “The experience at the UA College of Law was life changing in the best way,” Bostwick said. “I especially liked moot court, law review, torts with Professor Dobbs, and all the trial practice and advocacy work we were so fortunate to have the opportunity to do with Professor Mauet.”
Following law school, Bostwick began her career as a litigator with Gallagher & Kennedy in Phoenix. She eventually returned to Tucson and became a partner at Molloy Jones & Donahue, then one of the largest law firms in southern Arizona. She later transitioned to a solo practice focused on employment and civil rights litigation. Most recently, Bostwick served both as a senior compliance consultant for the University of Arizona’s Office of Institutional Equity, and as a judge pro tem at the Pima County Justice Court.
Although Bostwick’s transition to the bench will demand much of her time, she hopes she can carve out time for her interests outside the courtroom. She still loves music, and plays oboe and English horn in a community orchestra; she cherishes time with good friends and family, and also enjoys exploring the Tucson outdoors. “I love Sabino Canyon and Mount Lemmon, getting out on the river walk with friends, and hitting a tennis ball around now and then,” said Bostwick. “A good book on the porch works too.”