Contreras v. Bourke

Summary

The court held that a judge who previously recused from a case cannot later re-enter it without explaining why disqualification no longer applies and giving the parties an opportunity to object. Because the judge did neither, the vexatious-litigant ruling was voidable, and the matter must be decided anew by a different judge. The court also held that the party waived a separate challenge based on the judge’s prior appointment of the opposing party as a justice of the peace pro tempore.