January 2015 - Boulder County Bar Association

BOULDER COUNTY BAR
ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER
JANUARY 2015
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
ON THE RECORD
SPEED DATING WITH THE JUDGES
SENIOR LAWYER LUNCH
lAWYERS ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRO BONO PAGE
CLASSIFIED ADS
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JANUARY CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Tuesday, January 6
SOLO/SMALL FIRM
Business Law Hot Topics 2014
Presenter: Fern O’Brien
Noon @ Faegre Baker Daniels
$25 CLE, $15 New/Young Lawyers,
$12 Lunch
Tuesday, January 13
EMPLOYMENT
The EEOC’s New Enforcement Guidance on
Pregnancy Discrimination & Related Issues
Presenter: Rita Byrnes Kittle
Noon @ Caplan & Earnest
$25 CLE, $15 New/Young Lawyer, $12 Lunch
Wednesday, January 7
BOULDER IDC
Reducing Conflict by Moving from Judgment to Compassion
Presenter: Christine Coates
and Claire Easton
11:30 @ Avalon
Register at Boulderidc.org
Wednesday, January 14
SOLO/SMALL FIRM
Monthly Happy Hour
5:00 @ Conor O’Neills
Wednesday, January 7
CIVIL LITIGATION
The Work and Workings of the Colorado
Court of Appeals
Presenter: Judge Gale Miller
Noon @ Justice Center Training
Room East
$25 CLE, $15 Young Lawyer,
Brown Bag Lunch
Thursday, January 8
IN-HOUSE COUNSEL
Brand Protection –
US and Internationally
Presenter: Kathleen Ryan
Noon @ Holland & Hart
$25 CLE, $15 Young Lawyer, $12 Lunch
Thursday, January 8
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Sun Tzu Tactics for
Avoiding the Patent War
Presenter: Bart Nutter
Noon @ Broadway Suites
$25 CLE, $15 Young Lawyer, $12 Lunch
Friday, January 9
AVAILABILITY OF LEGAL SERVICES
Monthly Roundtable
Noon @ Boulder County Legal Services
Wednesday, January 21
FAMILY
PRE Factors: How Substance Abuse, Mental Health Issues and Credibility Impact
Parenting Time Recommendations
Presenter: Dr. Mark Kilmer
Noon @ Justice Center
$25 CLE, $15 New/Young Lawyer, Brown
Bag Lunch
Wednesday, January 14
ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Happy Hour and Networking
5PM @ West Flanders Brewery
Thursday, January 22
NATURAL RESOURCES/ENVIRONMENTAL
and REAL ESTATE
Presenter: Polly Jessen
Noon @ The Cork
$25 CLE, $15 Young Lawyer,
$18 Lunch
Thursday, January 15
BANKRUPTCY
Monthly Roundtable
Noon @ Agave
Friday, January 23
IMMIGRATION
Monthly Roundtable
8:30 am @ Broadway Suites
Friday, January 16
NEW/YOUNG LAWYERS
Student Loan Solutions
Presenter: Douglas Triggs
Noon @ Justice Center
$15 CLE, Brown Bag Lunch
Friday, January 23
FAMILY
Family Law Software
Presenter: Barbara Stark
Noon @ Boulder Justice Center
Jury Assembly Room
$25 CLE, $15 Young Lawyers
Tuesday, January 20
BUSINESS
Partnership & LLC Tax Issues
Presenter: Justin Dodge
Noon – 1:30 @ Packard Dierking, 1.5 CLE
$30 CLE, $20 New/Young Lawyers, $12 Lunch
Tuesday, January 20
ELDER
Options for an Incapacitated
Client in Civil Litigations
Presenter: Tammy Conover and
Susie Germany
Noon @ Caplan & Earnest
$25 CLE, $15 New/Young Lawyer, $12 Lunch
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Tuesday, January 27
ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Must You Go to Court for a Divorce?
Presenter: Melinda Taylor
Noon @ Dietze and Davis
$25 CLE, $15 New/Young Lawyer, $12
Lunch
Wednesday, January 28
TAX, ESTATE PLANNING AND PROBATE
Informal Probate in Boulder County: Q &
A with John Lauce, Probate Clerk
for the 20th JD
Presenter: John Lauce
Noon @ Bryan Cave
$25 CLE, $15 New/Young Lawyer,
$12 Lunch
ON THE RECORD
By Jennifer Terry
Prior to law school, Judge Bruce Langer
was a reporter for the Daily Camera.
While Judge Langer enjoyed journalism,
he soon realized that it would be hard to
make a living and support a family on a
reporter’s salary. During his time with
the Daily Camera, Judge Langer covered
the courts, with nearly 80% of the cases
he covered being criminal cases. After
observing those cases, Judge Langer felt
that being a lawyer looked like fun,
something he could do, and do well, and
provide an interesting work life that
would support a family. Judge Langer
soon left the Daily Camera and enrolled
at the University of Colorado Law School.
After graduating from CU Law, Judge
Langer worked for a family law attorney
for two to three months before joining
the District Attorney’s office. Judge
Langer had interned with the district attorney’s office while in law school and
had always wanted to work in the area of
criminal law.
During his first four years with the District Attorney’s office, Judge Langer participated in nearly 100 trials. He had a
big caseload and worked hard. After
moving to the felony conviction unit, the
workload was not as fast paced and he
typically went to trial four times a year.
Judge Langer stated that in those early
years he would practice his openings and
closings in front of his wife.
When asked if he missed the District Attorney’s office, Judge Langer stated that
he missed the camaraderie of the office
because everyone at the office worked
together as a team. It was hard work
that was emotional and he and his fellow
teammates developed a common bond.
On the bench, he has the support and
guidance of his fellow Judges, but he
feels like more of a free agent or sole
practitioner.
Joining the bench has been a big change
for Judge Langer. For over twenty years
he was focused on advocating for victims
and now he must focus on different
goals. Instead of advocating for a particular outcome, his new focus is finding
the best way to efficiently and effectively resolve the case.
Prior to joining the domestic relations
rotation, Judge Langer sat on the civil
docket rotation. The civil docket included a wide range of cases and topics
and he finds that family law is a little
more contained. Both have provided a
process of constantly being educated
and addressing issues that he never
came across while working in the district attorney’s office.
To the Family Law Bar, Judge Langer
has the following advice• Look at the evidence you want to get
into the record and figure out how to
get it admitted under the rules of evi-
dence. Really think about the most effective argument to get the evidence
admitted, don’t just assume it will get
in.
• Young lawyers, it is good to have an
outline or script, but don’t forget to
listen to the testimony of the witness.
Pay attention. It throws the witness
off if the lawyer is too focused and has
not really listened to their answer.
• It is important to remember that
Judge Langer is not a juror and that he
can put exhibits that do not get admitted aside. Further, Judge Langer will
not rule on whether an exhibit is ad(continued on next page)
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ON THE RECORD
(continued from page 4)
missible unless he looks at the exhibit.
Judge Langer considers himself to be
fairly easy going and tries to be understanding, but does like for attorneys
and their clients, to be respectful to
each other. While in his courtroom, attorneys must stand when making objections, they must act in good faith, and
they must not fight with each other.
Judge Langer has seen a lot of personal
animosity in the courtroom. He feels
that it is just not as civil as it used to be,
and that a vast majority of the time this
animosity is due to lack of communication between the attorneys. He says it
is important for attorneys to communicate and to avoid such a situation, otherwise it is their clients who pay the
price.
When asked whether he preferred written or oral closing arguments, Judge
Langer stated that written closings are
preferred if the parties run out of time
or the Court must address complicated
issues and he is unable to rule from the
bench. Trial briefs are also important
and can be helpful to the Court if there
are complicated issues before the
bench. If Judge Langer is able to rule
from the bench, he would prefer oral
closings.
When asked about the use of domestic
violence and sexual assault allegations
as a tactic to gain an advantage, he
replied that judges have to be very
careful and judge each situation on a
case-by-case basis. It is difficult and
Courts must be cautious to protect any
children involved.
Judge Langer feels that the Joint Trial
Management Certificate is an incredibly important aspect of every case because it highlights the issues of the
case and forces attorneys to work together and communicate with each
other about the issues. Judge Langer
strongly encourages attorneys to talk
more often. Communication with opposing counsel will help resolve some
issues and allows attorneys to spend
time at trial on other important issues.
Judge Langer believes that there are
advantages to more experienced attorneys working with newer attorneys.
Experienced attorneys can sometimes
become cynical and less energetic,
while newer attorneys have youth, en-
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ergy and enthusiasm. Working together will give the younger attorney
a chance to learn what issues should
be resolved and can prevent the more
experienced attorney from developing
a sense of not being as invested.
Judge Judy LaBuda served on the domestic relations rotation from September 2012 through September
2014 and is now serving on the civil
rotation. During her time with the domestic relations rotation, Judge
LaBuda had the opportunity to witness the very best and worst of the
Family Law Bar.
When asked what advice she would
give young family law lawyers, Judge
LaBuda stated that young lawyers
need to “recognize that there are
statutes and cases that control the
case.” Too often young lawyers, especially in parenting time and decision
making disputes, would present their
cases without offering evidence or addressing the elements of the applicable statute. It is important for lawyers,
both young and old, to properly present their case, as the statutes provide
a guide for the judges.
Judge LaBuda also stressed the importance of having concise pleadings. It is
not necessary to repeat your argument three times. It is also not necessary to capitalize or italicize important
portions of your argument or to call
opposing counsel names. The Judges
want a concise pleading that states
your position and supporting law.
Judge LaBuda echoed Judge Langer’s
opinion that lawyers need to be professional, including dressing like you
are going to court, and to be respectful
to the Court, opposing counsel, and
the opposing party. It is important
that lawyers maintain composure and
refrain from making faces and throwing their hands up in the air while in
the courtroom.
(continued on page 6)
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ON THE RECORD
(continued from page 4)
During the interview Judge LaBuda
stated several times that we have
great domestic relations attorneys in
Boulder County. She went on to say
that we are part of a noble profession
and that if an attorney gets too emotionally vested in the case, they tend
to loose sight of the end result and can
end up behaving more like a client. It
is important to preserve the integrity
of our profession.
For young lawyers, Judge LaBuda
stressed the importance of finding
mentors. The best way to learn the
practice is from seasoned practitioners. Find one of the great domestic relations attorneys in town and ask
them to be a mentor. In fact, find
more than one! Spend time with the
mentor in Court, observe how they
prepare, how they handle witnesses
and introduce evidence.
Judge LaBuda misses her time on the
domestic relations rotation. She really enjoys domestic law. The attorneys and Court have a huge impact
and are helping families with a crisis.
As a domestic relations judge, you
have the ability to move a case along
and let people move forward with
their lives. Judge LaBuda also misses
the attorneys that she saw on a regular basis.
Judge LaBuda is enjoying her time on
the civil docket. It is a different experience, with a more relaxed pace. It is
still a lot of work, but with a different
level of urgency providing more time
to process intellectual legal ideas.
When asked what advice she would
give Judge Langer as he starts out his
domestic relations rotation, Judge
LaBuda remarked that domestic work
requires a lot of patience and it’s a
good thing that Judge Langer is a patient man. She also stated that there
are some great domestic relations attorneys and they taught her a lot
about how the law should be interpreted, especially with complicated issues.
Judge LaBuda thoroughly enjoyed her
time on the domestic relations rotation and looks forward to having the
occasional domestic relations case on
her docket.
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A TOTAL SUCCESS FOR SPEED DATING WITH THE 20TH JD
Judges LaBuda and Berkenkotter having a Q and A
with their tablemates.
Josh Anderson and Mike Miner share a holiday beer together while
waiting to meet the next judicial “dates.”
In the midst of holiday rush and craziness, on
December 11 at Shine, the judicial officers
and a group of BCBA members met for an
evening of “speed dating” with the judges.
This was a first-time event for the bar and it
was a total success of comradery, good
humor, sharing thoughts and impressions
along with a lot of laughter. Jennifer Terry
and Frank DeVincent were the force behind
making this happen. Judges LaBuda and Butler and Magistrate Brodsky also spearheaded
the success of the event. It was three hours
of questions and answers from the court
along with door prizes, beer, wine and food.
Some of the comments I received were “This
is amazing, I really learned something
tonight while having fun. Someone was
quoted as saying “we should have done this
20 years ago.” Everyone was so appreciative
and said “we have to have another one soon.”
Judges Mulvahill and Butler speak to with Joel Hays,and friends.
We also collected some wonderful childrens
books for The Storybook Program and we
thank you all for your gracious donations.
Magistrate Brodsky, Bob Lanham and Frank DeVincent.
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HOLIDAY SENIOR LAWYERS LUNCH
Ruth Irvin and Ann Mygatt catch up and share a glass of wine with
lunch.
Left to right: Peter Dietze, Kevin Snell, Moe Sandstead,
Gary Sandblom and Jack Alexson.
Left to right: Bill Benjamin, Greg Martin, Mary Street, Dale Johnson,
Steve Cook and Paul Bierbaum.
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LAWYERS ANNOUNCEMENTS
CONSTRUCTION
▪
BUSINESS
▪
LAND ▪
ESTATES
We are pleased to announce that Meghan C. Hungate has become a partner in the firm,
and that Robinson Tweedy, P.C. is now Robinson Hungate, P.C.
We gratefully acknowledge the leadership, mentorship, and friendship of our partner and colleague, John Tweedy,
and wish him the best of luck as he continues his mediation and dispute resolution practice as Tweedy Law, LLC.
Robinson Hungate P.C. will continue to specialize in the areas of Real Estate and Construction Litigation,
Business Planning and Litigation, and Estate Planning and Litigation. Your referrals are, as always, sincerely appreciated.
Please note our new address, effective Feb. 2015:
4999 Pearl East Circle, Suite 201, Boulder, CO 80301
Stevens, Littman, Biddison, Tharp & Weinberg, LLC proudly celebrates our 35th Anniversary
of providing quality legal services in Boulder, Vail and beyond.
Areas of practice:
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Thank you to the clients, friends, and colleagues who made these years possible.
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5RJHU·VUROHPRGHODVDQDWWRUQH\DQGJUDFLRXVSHUVRQFRQWLQXHVWRVHUYHZHOODOOKHWRXFKHV
LLC
Stevens, Littman, Biddison, Tharp & Weinberg, LLC
For the legal needs of a lifetime.
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PRO BONO PAGE
Pro Bono Referrals
Pro Se Program Volunteers
Pro Bono Corner
Eight cases were referred during the
month of November. Thank you to the
following attorneys:
Robert Cooper
Matt James
Craig Small
Todd Stahly
Louisa Young
Mary Louise Edwards
John Hoelle
Lauren Ivison
Craig Small
Lenny Tanis
BCAP Volunteers
No requests for pro bono referrals
for the Boulder County AIDS Project
in November.
Interested in a
Pro Bono case?
Please call Erika at
303-449-2197.
CLE credits available for
pro bono service.
Thank you to the following mediators who accepted cases in November:
James Christoph
Christine Fleetwood
Simon Mole
PROFESSIONALISM ON-CALL LIST
January 5
Tom Rodriguez
303.604.6030
January 12
Karl Kumli
303.447.1375
January 19
Trip DeMuth
303.447.7775
January 26
Todd Stahly
303.797.2900
Over Sixteen Years of Experience with
• Mediation
• Arbitration
• Settlement Conference Services
Also accepting referrals for personal
injury civil and criminal litigation.
Past President of Colorado Trial Lawyers and Boulder
County Bar Association; Colorado Super Lawyer 2007-2014.
Jim Christoph, JD
303.381.2560 christophlaw@comcast.net
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CLASSIFIED ADS
Office for $500.00 per month total! At the Registry Building located one block off the Pearl
Street Mall at 1113 Spruce Street. Rent includes a
desk in a four lawyer office, receptionist, phone service, internet, 2 nice conference rooms, utilities and full
kitchen. Catch? We lawyers primarily practice out of
our home offices and use this office and the conference rooms for client meetings, depositions and mediations. This is a great value for someone seeking to
lower overhead but wanting more than a “virtual office.” Contact Jim Christoph at 303-381-2560.
LEGAL RESEARCH - experienced local attorney seeks
legal research, possible overflow contract work. Resume and writing samples available upon request. Rates
negotiable. Contact Erik S. Burns at 720-560-9685 or
eriksburns@gmail.com.
Large Boulder office share for one attorney and one
staff; rent includes shared receptionist, two conference
rooms, kitchen, copier/scanner, basic supplies, stunning
views, parking, CALL: 303-442-0165.
Large windowed office, opening to a deck facing the
Justice Center at the Canyon Professional Building. Full
services include receptionist, fax, parking, storage area,
conference room and other amenities. Gross rent
$825/month. 303-444-1700.
Cathy Schultheis, Mediation & Paralegal Services, established in 1987, offers affordable mediation services for your clients, with evening and weekend
appointments available at $125/hr. Traveling Notary.
Supervised parenting time, $40/hr. door to door.
(303) 652-3638, http://www.mediationparalegalboulder.com/, cathyboulderagent@yahoo.com.
Two Sunny centrally located offices in Longmont available immediately. One office is 250 Ft./$500/mo. The
second office is 168 Ft./ $400/mo and has a private entrance. Both offices have use of common waiting room and
kitchen. Free off-street parking on bus routes, and handicap accessible. Rent includes utilities but not phone and
internet. If interested, call 303.544.2124.
Mobile Notary and Contract Paralegal Services.
Civil litigation ADC/CJA. Real estate transaction. Roz
Lynn Dorf, M.A. 303.494.6935.
John & Amanda Sessa
are longtime supporters of the
Boulder County Bar Association
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THE BCBA NEWSLETTER IS A MONTHLY
ELECTRONIC PUBLICATION
BY THE BOULDER COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION.
ARTICLES BY GUEST LAWYERS
MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT
PERMISSION FROM THE
BOULDER COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION OR
THE AUTHORS.
COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING INFORMATION
IS AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING
christine@boulder-bar.org
OR THE BAR’S WEBSITE
www.boulder-bar.org
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