Embattled Family Law Commissioner Transferred Off Norwalk Bench : Courts: James R. Ballew acknowledged complaints of an abrasive manner, but said he asked for reassignment.

A controversial family law commissioner is being transferred out of Norwalk Superior Court, at least in part because of complaints about his abrasive manner on the bench, a court official said.

James R. Ballew, 57, who has served as a family law commissioner in Norwalk since 1988, will start his new assignment Jan. 2 in Juvenile Dependency Court in Los Angeles. Ballew, who heard divorce and child custody cases in Norwalk, will preside in his new assignment over cases involving child abuse and molestation.

Presiding Superior Court Judge Ricardo A. Torres said complaints against Ballew were “certainly a factor” in the reassignment.

“I received a number of complaints in regards to (Ballew) being a male chauvinist and so forth,” Torres said. “That played a role because you always have women involved in family law cases. You have to be sensitive to their needs.”

Torres would not reveal the exact number of complaints he received. The presiding judge said other factors contributed to the transfer, but he declined to provide details.

Ballew said he had requested a new assignment to gain more experience and to expand his expertise with children. He said he mailed his request to the presiding judge in October, although he did not know if Torres received it.

The Times recently received critical reports about Ballew from some area residents who had appeared before him. They alleged that the commissioner was verbally abusive at times, and that his decisions were unfair.

Ballew acknowledged that he may have been too abrasive at times, and that there were conflicts with attorneys when he first became a commissioner three years ago. He said he has little patience with lawyers who come before him unprepared.

But he said he believed that things had settled down some time ago.

He also defended his decisions.

“I stand behind every (decision) I’ve made,” he said. The welfare of a child is the primary consideration when making a ruling in family law court, and the gender of those involved had nothing to do with his decisions, he said.

The supervising judge at the Norwalk courthouse, Robert W. Parkin, said he reviewed two of the cases that generated complaints, but he found no wrongdoing. “They’re judgment calls,” Parkin said. “What he did certainly was legal. If they felt there was an error, the avenue of appeal is open to them.”

Parkin also said he talked with Ballew early this year about his courtroom manner and reminded him “that he really had to treat people courteously up there. I never received any more complaints about that.”

Commissioner Peter Espinosa, who is currently assigned to Los Padrinos Juvenile Court in Downey, will replace Ballew.

Community correspondent Suzan Schill contributed to this story.