Alepuyo backs judicial nominee Tenorio

Veteran lawyer Viola Alepuyo has come out in support of the nomination of deputy attorney general Lillian Ada Tenorio to become a Superior Court judge.

In a letter she submitted yesterday to both Senate President Edith E. DeLeon Guerrero (D-Saipan) and Sen. Celina R. Babauta (D-Saipan), who chairs the Senate Executive Appointments and Government Investigations Committee, Alepuyo said Tenorio’s legal experiences will be an asset to the Judiciary. Tenorio has been a CNMI Supreme Court clerk, legislative counsel, private practitioner, and recently as the deputy AG.

Last November, Gov. Arnold I. Palacios nominated Tenorio to serve on the CNMI Superior Court as an associate judge.

Alepuyo said women are underrepresented in both the CNMI Bar Association and the bench. To date, there is currently only one female judge—Associate Judge Teresa Kim-Tenorio—compared to the six male jurists in the CNMI Judiciary.

As a woman, daughter, sister, and mother born and raised in the CNMI, Tenorio will bring with her attributes and perspectives the bench, Alepuyo said.

“Her personal and professional experiences will add to the quality and diversity of the CNMI jurists,” Alepuyo said.

Viola Alepuyo