Minnesota Lawyer Blog

In the 3rd Judicial District, the interim chief public defender, Karen Duncan, faces a contempt charge for not being present at one of two court proceedings scheduled in different counties for the same time.

Duncan was scheduled to handle a jury trial in Faribault (in Rice County) and to simultaneously be at a revocation hearing 15 miles away in Owatonna (in Steele County) on the morning of June 30. Upon receipt of the notice of conflicting hearings, she contacted court authorities in Owatonna, informed them of the scheduling conflict and requested a different hearing date for the revocation hearing. But Judge Casey Christian denied the request, and when Duncan did not appear at the scheduled time, set a court date of August 22 for her to show cause why she shouldn’t be held in contempt for missing the hearing.

Due to a hiring freeze enacted in 2007 and a round of budget and staff cuts that took effect last month, defenders are shorthanded. The Office of Public Defense has undertaken a number of steps to deal with its resource issues, including no longer representing parents in child-protection proceedings. Defenders more often than ever find themselves rushing from courtroom to courtroom trying to handle multiple matters.

“This is a case where the lawyer told the courts in two counties that she couldn’t be in both places at once,” said State Public Defender John Stuart in a press release. “We know the courts need to carry on their business, but as we have told everyone at the Capitol and in the justice system, along with losing 53 lawyer positions we have also lost the ability to do everything the courts want us to do, as quickly as they want to do it. The chief justice says there will be delays in the courts now, and, regretfully, we are part of that problem.”

Stuart told Minnesota Lawyer that, for the most part, the courts have been understanding of the resource issues faced by defenders and that there have been fewer showdowns over reductions in services than he originally anticipated.

The State Board of Public Defense has hired outside counsel, Philip Villaume, to handle Duncan’s hearing. Villaume has requested that Christian be disqualified as a material witness. Villaume has requested that the case be assigned to 3rd District Assistant Chief Judge Robert Benson because 3rd District Chief Judge William Johnson is also a witness in the case.

Villaume told Minnesota Lawyer that his client rushed back from Faribault to Owatonna, arriving approximately an hour after the time for which the revocation hearing had been scheduled. Villaume said that his client believes Judge Christian saw her in the courtroom, which is why Christian will be called as a witness. (Johnson is a witness because he is the judge Duncan was appearing before in Faribault.)

"This is a case where a lawyer was running behind schedule," Villaume said, noting public defenders frequently have to juggle multiple appearances and it doesn't always work out. With recent staff cuts, this is true more than ever, he added.

Villaume provided the following statistics demonstrating how busy 3rd District public defenders are. In the first six months of 2008, the caseload of the office of 17 full-time and 15 part-time defenders included: 1,106 felonies, 728 gross misdemeanors, 1,663 misdemeanors, 1,153 probation violations and more.

Minnesota Lawyer this week has an interesting article on companies that loan money to plaintiffs who are desperately in need of funds. ("The cash advance conundrum.")

I have mixed feelings about these companies. On the one hand, they provide a service that is needed. On the other hand, the fees they charge seem exorbitant to me. Of course, you could make the argument that only people who deem the trade off worthwhile will borrow the money. (Paging Adam Smith: your free-market theory is being tested.) And, of course, the companies are taking quite a risk (i.e. they only get paid back if the plaintiff wins).

Minneapolis attorney Peter Riley sagely points out in the piece that such an arrangement makes sense in some cases, but it should be used only sparingly and where the fees for the service are not unreasonable.

I recall a wrongful-death case on which I worked as a law student where the widow had lost all the insurance proceeds she had received from her late husband's policy through bad real estate investments. The defendant, a product manufacturer, was dangling a settlement of $600,000 for a case that was easily worth seven figures. Faced with mounting financial pressures, the widow seriously considered taking it. It occurs to me that a legal-funding company may have been the answer. It could have provided our client with the short-term cash she needed without requiring her to sacrifice her long-term interests. But I would only recommend a client deal with one of these companies as a last resort.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty yesterday signed the Omnibus Public Safety Funding and Omnibus Bill that, among other things, funds 10 new judge units -- seven for the District Courts and three for the Court of Appeals. Our friends at the Pioneer Press reported 15 new judges but that's in error, the state court administrator's office assures us. Minnesota Lawyer will bring you complete details on the court funding bill in next week's paper.

The Star Tribune today notes that a bill providing $2 billion for prisons, courts and the Department of Public Safety has a high level of support at the Capitol. The measure would also provide $3.4 million for services to battered women and children and $2 million to put more police on city streets.

After DFLers removed a controversial provision on litigation over insurance claims, the bill passed the Senate 65-0 and the House 124-6. Gov. Tim Pawlenty said he will sign it next week, the Strib reports.