Susan Steingass
Education
- Denison University, Granville, Ohio, B.A., with honors
- Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill., M.A., with honors
- U.W. Law School, J.D., magna cum laude
Practice
- Partner, Habush, Habush, Davis & Rottier, Madison, Wis.
(1994-present)
- Judge, Dane County Circuit Court, Branch 8, civil (1985-91),
juvenile (1991-93), criminal (1993)
- Partner, associate, Stafford, Rosenbaum, Rieser & Hansen,
Madison, Wis. (1977-85)
- Law clerk, Justice Nathan S. Heffernan, Wisconsin Supreme Court
(1976-77)
Professional activities
- State Bar of Wisconsin: State Bar-elected
representative to the Judicial Council (1995-present); State Bar
representative to the Federal Nominating Committee (1996-present); Legal
Assistance Committee (1996-present); Commission on Delivery of Legal
Services, South Madison Task Force (1995-96); author/editor, CLE book,
Wisconsin Civil Procedure Before Trial (1996); co-editor with Hon.
Thomas H. Barland, Wisconsin Evidence: A Courtroom Handbook
(1996-present); Professionalism Committee; Participation of Women in the
Bar Committee; Bench Bar Committee; Bridge-the-Gap Committee; presenter
and facilitator in more than 40 State Bar educational programs on varied
subjects including evidence, civil procedure, court management and
torts
- Wisconsin Equal Justice Task Force: Chair (1989-91); report on the
effects of gender on decision making in the legal system (1991)
- American Bar Association: Delegate, National Conference of State
Trial Court Judges (1986-92); participant, ALI/ABA programs nationwide
on various litigation topics
- James E. Doyle Chapter, American Inns of Court: Member, membership
chair, regional funding coordinator (1992-present)
- American Law Institute: Member (1987-present); advisor, Restatement
of the Law, Torts, 3rd, apportionment of liability (1994-present)
- U.W. Law School: Instructor, evidence, environmental litigation,
civil procedure, trial advocacy (1981-present); Board of Visitors
(1987-94); Board of Directors, Wisconsin Law Alumni Association
(1994-present)
- Judicial activities: Secretary of the Judicial Conference (1986-88);
assistant dean, instructor, the Wisconsin Judicial College (1986-92);
instructor, National Judicial College, Reno, Nev. (1993); editor,
Wisconsin Judicial Benchbook, Civil (1989)
- Wisconsin Association of Trial Lawyers: Board of Directors
(1995-present); program chair (1995-present)
Honors
Fellow of the American Bar Foundation (elected, 1995); Wisconsin
Trial Judge of the Year, American Board of Trial Advocates (1992);
Distinguished Service Award, Wisconsin Association of Mediators (1991);
Order of the Coif (1976); Wisconsin Law Review (1974-76)
Civic activities
United Way of Dane County, Board of Directors (1993-present), chair,
Community Problem Solving Committee (1995-present); Wisconsin Chapter of
the Nature Conservancy, Board of Trustees (1993-present), chair,
Strategic Planning and Government Relations committees
Comment
Our profession and our Bar are at a crossroads. We are besieged by
lawyer bashing and cynicism at the same time that the social issues of
our times focus squarely on our profession. We too often fight against
ourselves instead of working together.
Virtually all lawyers I know are hardworking and decent people who
give to their clients and communities. This tells me our problems are
less related to individual lawyers than to our failure to educate our
citizens, our juries and our children about what we do, the ethical
standards to which we adhere, that we are problem solvers, not problem
makers, and that we are and remain, above all, a service profession.
Were I to be honored by election, among my highest priorities would
be to expand ongoing efforts to educate the public about our legal
system. I would like to see programs in our schools to help children
understand early the critical part lawyers play in our system. President
David Saichek's initiatives have built a firm foundation through such
programs as "Law Talk." I am committed to expanding these educational
efforts.
However, not all of our problems come from a public lack of
understanding. Our courts and our institutions are jammed. The fallout
from society's problems so often lands squarely at our door. Budget cuts
have left many people without access to the system. As a profession, we
need to find ways to adapt our roles to the needs of society.
Were I elected, I would build upon President Skilton's work through
the Commission on the Delivery of Legal Services. The Bar and its
members need to take up the challenge of continuing to serve those who
cannot afford access to the legal system without us.
Over the years I have also become increasingly concerned about the
breach between various components of our legal system. All too often we
hear talk that lawyers regard each other and the bench as enemies.
Incivility and rancor increasingly plague the practice. Lawyers too
often regard judges as insensitive to the practice of law, and judges
too often regard lawyers as impediments to progress. Yet we all serve
the same system. We should be working together, not apart.
If elected, I would remain committed to increasing our common
understanding. I think my many years as a practicing lawyer and judge
help me appreciate this common purpose. I want to expand upon the work
of the Bench-Bar Committee and make this a priority for all the Bar. I
would like to rekindle the energy that came from the joint Bench/Bar
winter convention of several years ago. We need to appreciate what
binds, not what separates, us.
From travel to local bar associations, I know that the State Bar is
not uniformly regarded as inclusive, welcoming and relevant to the
professional lives of its members. Whether this is reality or perception
makes little difference, because perception has a way of becoming
reality.
I am totally committed to the proposition that we are required to be
members of this Bar, and that this Bar has a concomitant responsibility
to represent all of us, whether from Shell Lake or Milwaukee, from
Darlington or Green Bay, from solo practice or the biggest firm in the
state, from government service or family practice.
If elected, I would remain committed to the idea that the Bar must
serve all its constituencies. I would personally visit and listen to
local bar associations around the state, not just during the election
campaign but also afterwards. I would also use the appointment
prerogative to bring in new people and new ideas.
In all this, I will be, as I have been, a consensus builder. I have
been involved for a long time in a lot of positions - as a litigator and
a teacher, in both small- and medium-sized firms, as a judge and an
employee of the State of Wisconsin, in numerous bar endeavors statewide
and nationally, and in service to my community. I think I understand the
issues that face our profession and our Bar as we approach the second
millennium. I want to be involved in Bar progress, not Bar politics. I
would be honored to serve.
Wisconsin Lawyer