Say what you will about George W. Bush's term as governor, one thing that can't be argued is that he broke apart the good-ol'-boy network that previous Republican govs habitually used to fill judicial vacancies. One of the minority attorneys he named was Levi Benton, a previously little-known lawyer who was nominated in 1999. Benton has stayed out of the limelight for the most part since then but has won a reputation as a courteous, well-prepared judge who's ready to listen to both sides. He's not the flashiest guy on the bench, but neither side of a case comes out of his courtroom feeling like they got screwed. Well, not too much, anyway -- no one who loses a court case ever thinks they got a fair hearing.