INTERVIEW | BY KEVIN E. MCREYNOLDS
Q&A with Incoming Chief Justice Brian Boatright In law school, I’d planned to do tax law, but then I interned with a judge and got glued to the courtroom. I worked for Judge Villano in Jefferson County, who I think was one of the best trial judges the state’s ever seen. My plan had been to be a DA for a few years for trial experience and then go to work at my dad’s firm. That didn’t happen. In addition to loving trial work I also had the experience of having a judge treat me intemperately one time. It got me thinking that there was a better way of doing things, especially with the potential impact a judge can have on people’s lives. It ultimately led me to join the bench myself. How did you approach issues of ethics and professionalism as a practicing attorney and how has that informed your later career on the bench? We all have a sense of right and wrong. What your conscience tells you. I try to always listen to that voice. At the end of the day, I center on wanting to be proud of who I am and what I do and use my dad as a model — thinking “What would my dad do?” I find that I’m guided by that inner moral compass. There can obviously be more complex issues, but you always want to err on the side of justice.
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or those of you who may have missed the news, Colorado Chief Justice Nathan Coats recently announced his retirement, and a change in policy to rotate the role of Chief among members of the Court. As a result, after Chief Justice Coats retires in January he will be succeeded by Justice Brian Boatright, who will in turn hand over the Chief role to Justice Monica Márquez. I sat down (via Zoom) to talk with incoming Chief Justice Boatright about his new role.
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Tell us a bit about yourself and what led you to law school? My dad was an attorney here in Colorado and I decided I was going to be one too when I was five years old. I went to an adoption hearing with my dad and saw that he made these people so happy that I thought he was like Santa Claus. After that, I never really considered any other profession. You started your career in the 1st JD District Attorney’s Office, what led you towards judicial service?
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Based on the advice you give your own clerks, what would you say to law students or attorneys who are interested in public service or even becoming a judge one day? I love working with my clerks. It reminds me of my own experience working with Judge Villano. As a judge, I’ve had a joy of getting to perform the wedding for several of my former clerks. For advice, the biggest piece I always give to my clerks is to always aim about one notch below where you have a right to be. I learned that as a prosecutor. Some-
