What experience in your legal career best prepared you for your work on the bench?

An early observation after I was appointed was how much I was drawing on so many of my previous life experiences, ones that I would not necessarily have associated with becoming a judge. The more traditional experiences of litigating all types of cases, writing factums, chairing meetings, and managing and mentoring lawyers have of course been helpful.  But the following life experiences have made my work easier:   helping friends sort out relationship issues; mediating conflicts in my immediate family; reading books-both fiction and non-fiction; volunteering with refugees.  These experiences increased my empathy, improved my understanding of human nature and human motivations, and reinforced for me the complexities of human interactions.   Since most legal conflicts are, in the end, a result of frayed or misunderstood human relationships, it is not surprising that these experiences were preparatory.

 

What do you wish the public knew about the justice system?

I wish the public knew more about the resolution processes before a matter gets to court, in criminal, family and civil matters. The court hearing is a place of last resort to resolve a disputed legal matter.  The disclosure processes, the negotiations between the parties at various stages of the proceedings, either with or without third party assistance, including a judge, the case management and preliminary procedural rulings all assist in resolving cases before they reach the courtroom door.  As a result, the cases the court hears are often the hardest to resolve, for various reasons - the degree of conflict between the parties, an undetermined legal issue, or high stakes with respect to the outcome.  Deciding these kinds of cases is an important role for the court.  The lawyers or self-represented litigant have an essential role to play in how the case unfolds and whether or not it will get to court or resolve elsewhere.  The judge presiding at the hearing can only decide on the basis of the facts and evidence as presented, guided by the relevant legal parameters. There is usually much other information that has been exchanged between the parties as part of the case on the way to court that the judge never learns.  The tools that the court has for resolving a matter, including remedy, are much more limited than what may be available outside of court.   It is important for the public to understand that the court hearing is just one of many steps in the justice system and there are many other flexible ways to resolve a matter before it reaches that stage. 

Learn more about Justice Duncan