The Hon. Brad L. Karren is a judge for the 19th West Judicial Circuit Court in Arkansas. He was elected to the bench on May 22, 2012, and re-elected in 2014 and 2020.
Karren was issued a letter of censure by the Arkansas Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission on January 21, 2022. The letter follows a confrontation between Karren and three other individuals, one of whom parked in a spot reserved for the judge. According to the commission, Karren’s actions at the time were inappropriate and avoidable.
Prior to his election, Karren was a judge for the Rogers Division of the Benton County District Court, a position to which he was named in 2009. Before that, he worked as an attorney at Reeves & Karren (1999 to 2008). Karren supplemented his practice with service as a small claims judge in Rogers (1995 to 2004) and Bentonville (1996 to 2008) as well as a prosecutor for the City of Little Flock (2000 to 2002).
Karren earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah. He then completed a J.D. at the University of Arkansas School of Law in 1991.
After graduating from law school, Karren began his legal career as corporate counsel for Wal-Mart. He worked in that capacity until 1994, at which time he became a deputy prosecuting attorney for the Benton County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Then, in 1999, he entered into private practice.