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Indiana Legal Services
Indiana University Maurer School of Law, 2001
Why did you decide to enter the legal profession?
I decided that I wanted to be a lawyer while in elementary school. I’m from an automotive town and during my childhood the town was hit hard by an economic downturn. A lot of good people struggled and were at risk of losing their homes. I heard the adults around me saying that lawyers were helping people save their homes. I wasn’t 100% sure what a lawyer was at that time, but I knew that I wanted to be able to help people.
If you hadn’t pursued a legal career, what would you be doing?
I was fortunate enough to work with an amazing political science professor, Rosalee Clawson, while I was earning my undergraduate degree. If I weren’t a lawyer, I would, without a doubt, be a political scientist.
Who is someone who has inspired you in your career?
My parents, Charles and Marva, inspire me. When my mother started her career, she was the sole woman in a department that had only been staffed by men. Some of the long-term employees told her that women were incapable of performing the job. She had to prove over and over again that she could do the work just as well as the men in her department. She persevered, exceeded her weekly goals, and worked for that employer for many decades. By the time she left, there were many women in the department. My father and his sister integrated their school. There were people who mistreated them, but they persevered.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
Several years ago, I asked a mentor of mine whether she had any advice on how to succeed in a new position I’d just accepted. She told me to remember to be kind. Being kind doesn’t mean avoiding difficult conversations but to approach each conversation with respect and compassion for the other person.
What is something you wish people knew about lawyers?
Every lawyer that I know became a lawyer because they wanted to help people and to make a difference.
Tell us about a “lesson learned” moment you’ve had in your career.
I worked as a certified legal intern while in law school. My supervisor at the time read the Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure from cover to cover each January and set aside time each week to read recently published cases. He recommended that every new lawyer do the same. During my first few months of practice, this lesson came in handy during a contested hearing. I was able to respond to the opposing counsel’s argument by citing a case I had read a few weeks prior.
Tell us something surprising about you.
During junior high, I played alto saxophone and competed in music competitions as a soloist, a member of a duet, and as part of a concert band.
What makes a good lawyer/judge?
A good member of the legal profession has a full understanding that our actions and decisions impact people long after we are no longer involved in their case.
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