11/16/2020
๐ถ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ช๐๐๐๐:
๐๐ก๐ ๐๐จ๐ง๐จ๐ซ๐๐๐ฅ๐ ๐๐ง๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ข๐ง
๐๐๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐๐๐๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ฒ
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ฅ๐๐ฐ๐ฒ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ข๐ซ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ฌ๐ค๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ฅ?
There are many different ways to improve as a litigator. While still in law school, I was very fortunate to secure an internship with a Public Defender's Office. I was instantly surrounded by some of the most passionate and dedicated freedom and constitutional rights fighters I would ever meet. I fell in love with the world of criminal law, the world of the Innocence Project, the world of some of the most underpaid and overworked and under appreciated legal fighters in the litigation world. I was allowed to take to trial my first bench and jury cases in that setting. When I was not working on my own cases, I was constantly checking court dockets to see which trials were going forward. I introduced myself to every court manager and asked them if they could please let me know when their court would have a trial. I would check dockets for trials, which attorneys were on the cases, whether the cases were criminal, family law or civil, which judge was presiding and anything I could find out about the case. I would watch as many trials as I could fit into my schedule. I would feverishly take notes in my chicken scratch handwriting which I could hardly decipher. Later on I would attempt to contact the lawyers on the cases to try and ask them hundreds of questions. Some would not return my calls, some would call me back thanking for my interest but informing me that they just do not have the time to meet with me and some would make the time in person or on the phone. Without a doubt, my love for trials and courtroom litigation was born during that summer. Over twenty years later, I am still constantly looking for the hearings and trials to watch. Anyone wanting to become a great litigator must be extremely proficient with the rules of evidence and procedure. I love seeing attorneys with their rule books underlined, pages bent backwards, flags and notes all over, highlighted, annotated and loved. One must also observe as many excellent and mediocre trials as possible. Some of the best lessons are learned from negative interactions and poorly prepared and conducted trials and hearings. I would try to memorize and emulate other lawyers' styles only to understand that, while their style worked amazingly for them, it could not work for me. I would try to incorporate parts from different styles in order to create my own. I think the most experienced litigators never stop learning and trying something new. Finally, a great litigator will not only know the facts of their case and the law and case law that supports their position but the facts of their opponent's case and the law that supports their position and be prepared to draw the differences.
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐๐ฏ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ญ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐ ๐?
There are so many parts of being a judge that I absolutely love! I love being a judge in a general jurisdiction court where I might start my day with a contested hearing in a child custody dispute, take a 10 minute break to meet with a law enforcement agent to address a warrant on an allegation of ongoing criminal activity, resume a custody dispute hearing, take a break to attend a community function, return to court to have a suppression hearing in a criminal case, take a 10 minute break to meet with a probation officer to discuss a probationer's progress or to prepare for a probation review and to return to the suppression hearing, followed by a hearing for a motion for summary judgment on a multi million dollar civil law case. I love the diversity of the cases and the attorneys that walk through our real or virtual courtroom door. I love the connections I am able to make. I love the ability to be involved in my community through my service as a judge. I love the fact that not a single day goes by that I do not learn from people in our court. I love that my service allows me to be fulfilled in a cerebral way as well as in a way that satisfies my need for human interaction and improvement.
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ง ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ, ๐๐ง๐ ๐ก๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ฏ๐ข๐๐?
My all time favorite two part advice came from my old law school professor. He told me that I need to do two things while serving on the bench: I must strive for consistency and I must take measures to take care of myself so I can continue serving my community. My mentor told me that the most frustrating thing for a lawyer is to not be able to adequately assess a judge's future rulings in light of his or her prior rulings. I have taken this advice to heart. The second part of the advice is quite more difficult to implement. Being a wife, a mom to human and canine kids, a daughter, a friend, a judge, a board member on several organizations and an elected official requires many things, the majority of which need to be completed yesterday. Scheduling time for yourself seems a bit absurd and unrealistic. However, what I have learned is that active listening under the best of circumstances can become most exhausting; actively listening to a heartbreaking case involving physical, mental and emotional trauma or to a tedious complicated property case or to a breach of contract on an oil lease case could easily unsettle some of the strongest and most grounded minds. I learned the effect of a listener's fatigue during the era of Covid-19 pandemic. I also learned that sometimes such simple things as taking a 5 minute break to concentrate on counting your breaths, taking a 30 minute break to work in your garden (if only to kill another beautiful plant), taking a ten minute break to brush your dog, taking a 40 minute lunch break to look at the waves, taking an hour long lunch break to work out at your garage based gym, taking a 5 minute break to call your best friend or taking a 15 minute break to drink a cup of hot tea may do wonders for clearing and protecting your mind and mental health. I learned that just like they tell you on an airplane, in case of an emergency, you should place the oxygen supply application on yourself before attempting to help others, you should first make sure that you are in a stable mental spot to begin and continue listening and helping others. I believe this advice applies not only to judges and lawyers but to any professional, any parent, any human being.
๐โ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ก ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ถ๐๐ฟ๐ด'๐ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐พ๐ค๐ช๐ง๐ฉ, ๐ฝ๐๐ง ๐๐๐๐จ๐๐ง๐จ, ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ฎ๐๐ง ๐๐ฅ๐ค๐ฉ๐ก๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐จ.
