The Coolest Thing I Have Done as a Lawyer

By Courtney Mendoza (she/her)

As lawyers, we’re oftentimes considered “boring stiffs,” but if you knew the folks practicing in Clark County, you’d think otherwise. Over the years, many interesting and impactful things have come up for our practitioners, here are a handful of those moments:

Judge Clark once had a client acquitted on a residential burglary charge, where the allegations included the client having taken a shower in the victim’s basement while high on drugs. Judge Clark worried that the client may be back with new charges, or worse, because of the client’s drug addiction and high-risk behaviors; until a few years into her taking the Bench, where she was thrilled to preside over her former client’s now successful Drug Court graduation.

Judge Lewis and his wife remember the time he argued a case before the Washington Supreme Court while they sat on a stage set for “Bat Boy: The Musical.”

Commissioner George maintains that he “can’t think of anything [he’s] done (as a lawyer or not) as being interesting. Just a bunch of old war stories nobody cares about.”

Cathy Kuffner served as an Officer in the US Navy JAG Corps during September 11, 2001.

Christie Martin assisted in a medical guardianship case for a Ugandan girl who couldn’t walk.

Erin McAleer was admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court, with a few alumni from his school, and sat mere feet from the Justices during two oral arguments. Erin was able to get a picture of himself inside the room for new prospective members just prior to the Court swearing everyone in.

Jeff Holmes is living many of his fellow colleagues’ dreams as he’s currently off doing the coolest thing he’s ever done as a lawyer, taking amazing vacations and championing a healthy work-life balance! Jeff explains that one of the coolest things he’s ever done as a lawyer was to establish a routine of taking roughly two months of vacation each year, including a longer vacation of at least a month away from the office. He underscores how his time away from the office makes him a better lawyer because it allows him to have things to look forward to, the ability to completely unplug and forget about his caseload while traveling, and ultimately led him to pursuing his longer-term sabbatical. Jeff is currently five months into his sabbatical and sent us a picture from he and his wife’s October 2022 four-day backpacking trip in the Milford Sound in New Zealand.