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With a judge for a dad, Brian Bade had an early exposure to the legal profession.
“I think I had an interest in it generally through high school, but also, my father was a Circuit Court judge in Blackford County for 31 years, so all of my childhood, just growing up around it a little bit, I think helped influence me that it was a worthwhile pursuit,” Bade, himself now the judge of the Blackford Circuit Court, said.
Bade studied criminal justice at Ball State University, then earned his J.D. from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in 2009.
Bade would go on to become Circuit Court judge in 2019. There was a gap between his judicial service and that of his father, Bruce Bade, and the younger Bade admittedly didn’t expect to take the bench so soon into his career.
“I started practicing and my dad started an office with me — he retired in 2006 — just kind of to give him something to still do. As he slowed down on assisting and I was primarily handling everything, I knew I would want to, at some point, serve as a judicial officer, but I assumed it would be later in my career.”
But then a judge who served between the Bades, Dean Young, announced his retirement in 2018, and Brian Bade saw an opportunity.
“The judge that was in between us announced that he was going to retire, and that was kind of obviously sooner than we expected him to, so I went ahead and ran to take the spot at that time, simply because it was open and it worked out,” Bade said.
Prior to becoming a judge, Bade said his general practice with his father prepared him for the diverse docket has oversees now.
“I’m really glad I was exposed to variety in case types before I got into this position, because I’d be struggling to tread water on things that I’ve not ever experienced before otherwise,” he said.
Bade is the latest Indiana trial judge to be featured in Indiana Lawyer’s Spotlight series profiling jurists in more rural counties. Here is what he had to say about life on and off the bench.
If you hadn’t gone into the legal field, what is a job you think you might be doing?
I substitute taught during my undergrad at Ball State, and I’m really passionate about sports, as well. I assume I would have probably ended up in the educational field, either as a teacher (or) an athletic director, and I would’ve probably coached junior high or high school sports.
What are some of your favorite things about being a judge so far?
I suppose my favorite part is being able to give litigants the time and the opportunity to be heard; I have a little bit of extra time that I can dedicate to each case. And one thing as an attorney I never loved was, if I was in a particularly busy jurisdiction, I might have a case that I felt merited a day or two presentation, and we might be limited to two hours because of their schedule. I think my favorite part is making sure that everybody gets a chance to be heard — whether they’re happy with the decision or not, I can’t guarantee — but making certain they have that opportunity.
What is something you’ve learned about yourself since becoming a judge?
I’ve learned I’m a more patient than I guess I would have expected myself to be. There’s a lot of things that happen during the course of the presentation of the case or otherwise that really require patience to be able to handle it appropriately, and I think I have more than I thought I did coming in.
If you were able to, what is something you would change about the legal field?
The primary thing I’d change is, in a perfect world, having access to legal counsel is so critical. Unfortunately, there are a lot of barriers to that, whether it’s financial impairments or availability issues, depending on where your geographic location is. If there’s something I could change, that would probably be the primary area.
Do you have a favorite memory of your time on the bench so far?
Absolutely. When I was sworn in, I was able to have my dad swear me in, and that was a big deal for me. He was pretty influential in my career choice to begin with, but having served here for 31 years himself, it was pretty humbling to be able to step into the role he once held. So that was a special moment for me.
When you’re not on the bench, what are some of your hobbies?
I really enjoy spending time with my family. I’ve got three children and my wife, Amber, and we do quite a bit of things together. Individual and personal hobbies, I am a bit of a golf addict, and I enjoy playing guitar.•
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