The Role of Specialized Practice Groups in a Public Law Firm

Wis State Public Defender TorchThe Wisconsin State Public Defender (SPD) has dual responsibilities: we are a large law firm and a state agency. Although there is overlap, each function has its own set of expectations and stakeholders, and we strive to achieve harmony between both roles. In this blog post, I am going to discuss an area where we achieve congruence by developing specialty practice groups.

From the beginning of the SPD, we organized ourselves based on specializing in appellate and trial work. The agency continues to maintain both of these general areas of practice, and we have identified additional specific practice areas: juvenile, forensics, termination of parental rights, racial disparity, immigration, and sexually violent persons (Ch. 980).

The SPD benefits in several ways. From a state agency perspective, specialty practice groups allow us to share specialized knowledge and expertise efficiently, lessening the need for staff and private attorneys to “reinvent the wheel” in these complex practice areas. From a law firm perspective, specialization allows us to enhance the quality of legal representation provided to our clients statewide.

Each practice group is led by a coordinator. That person stays abreast of the latest developments in the practice area and shares this expertise as an advisor, mentor, and educator to other SPD practitioners. Coordinators serve as a clearinghouse of sorts as they assist others in quickly changing areas of legal practice. Staff contact them as needed when they are preparing a client’s case or have a question in a new or undeveloped area of the law.

Each coordinator pulls together practice materials, including motions, briefs, transcripts, case outlines, and research/articles/studies to share with practitioners. Coordinators keep track of the legal nuances and mundane details in their practice areas and catalog them for easy dissemination to attorneys when requested. They assist with the agency’s training efforts, including presenting at the annual conference. Some coordinators conduct or assist with expert examinations at motion hearings and trials. The coordinators also assist private bar attorneys with their questions related to the respective practice areas.

Cases involving clients charged as a sexually violent persons typically involve a number of very intricate and arcane actuarial statistics. A practitioner who only occasionally takes such cases would find it challenging to build the expertise needed to work with statistics. In this example, the Ch. 980 practice group assists the attorneys with training in these math and statistical elements. Similarly, the forensics coordinator helps others with the technical aspects of this practice area. In fact, as I write this post, the coordinator for our forensics practice group is assisting in a jury trial by focusing on the forensic elements of the case.

As the agency continues to utilize such specialties, we will, as necessary, change and adapt to the ever-evolving and changing field of criminal justice in Wisconsin.

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The Continued Expansion of Treatment Courts in Wisconsin

Gavel and BenchWisconsin was an early adopter of problem-solving, or treatment, courts. Starting with Dane County’s Drug Court Treatment Program in June 1996, Wisconsin is now home to 56 operating treatment courts according to the Wisconsin Court System website. In addition to treatment courts that address drug addiction, our state also has treatment courts that focus on alcohol, mental health, veterans, and tribal wellness. Some are hybrid, or co-occurring disorders, courts. While most courts are operated by one county for cases arising in that county, we are starting to see regional courts that address offenders from multiple counties.

Treatment courts, as the name suggests, treat or solve an issue while still holding the offender accountable for his or her criminal activities. Removing an offender’s addiction, for instance, decreases the likelihood that the person will reoffend in order to “feed” his or her addiction. Successful treatment can lead to a reduction in crime and recidivism while restoring an individual to have a greater opportunity to be a valuable member of the community.

One of the drivers behind the proliferation of treatment courts is the proven outcomes they are able to produce. In fact, according to a UW Population Health Institute study of treatment alternatives and diversion programs, communities received a $1.93 return on each $1.00 invested in these programs.

The treatment court model relies on a team-based approach in order to oversee and assist the individual to treat his or her addictions. Judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, probation agents, law enforcement, and treatment providers all come together in a non-adversarial model to promote problem-solving responses tailored to each offender. Nationally, research shows that specific aspects of treatment courts, such as this team approach and the direct interaction between the participants and the presiding judge, help the courts achieve the goal of reducing recidivism.

The Statewide Criminal Justice Coordinating Council and the Wisconsin Association of Treatment Court Professionals are working to create state standards for treatment courts to facilitate implementation in counties that may lack the resources to start a specialty court but that could sustain it once started.

The documented success of treatment courts makes it likely that Wisconsin will continue to see the development of new courts of this nature. The time, energy, and resources necessary to plan and operate these courts properly are a smart investment with significant benefits for individual participants, for public safety, and for taxpayers.

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Bounty Hunters at the Gates: Wisconsin’s Flirtation with the Bail Bonds System

Surely you’ve noticed when flipping through TV channels the reality show Dog the Bounty Hunter on A&E. The show centers upon Duane “Dog” Chapman—a bearded, tattooed, and bemulleted bounty hunter—as he and his family of fellow bail enforcement agents apprehend fugitives in sunny Hawaii. Chapman has gotten a fair amount of publicity outside of his show, including a Paula Deen-esque racial slur controversy (unlike Deen, he had no merchandising empire to lose) that resulted in the temporary cancellation of his show, and for being arrested and briefly imprisoned in Mexico for illegally capturing celebrity fugitive Andrew Luster.

Like most reality shows, Dog the Bounty Hunter follows a set format. It begins with a briefing, where we are introduced to the fugitive’s criminal history. Next comes an investigation, which generally involves phone calls and visits to former neighbors and family members. Each episode’s climax is generally the discovery and capture of the bail jumper. The show then shifts from action to tear-jerking drama, with Dog and family providing homespun advice to the re-apprehended fugitive about taking responsibility for life, finding a job, and quitting drugs. “Smoke brah?” counselor-mode Dog asks, slipping a cigarette into the handcuffed man’s mouth and lighting it for him. Typically, the fugitive’s family is present to provide tearful commentary on exactly where things went wrong. Dog the Bounty Hunter is sleazy, shamelessly tacky, and unquestionably entertaining.

Fast forward to Wisconsin, the summer of 2013.

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