The Distinguished Life & Work of the Honorable John E. Simonett
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William Mitchell Law Review Volume 39 | Issue 3 Article 7 2013 The Distinguished Life & Work of the Honorable John E. Simonett: Justice Simonett & the Art of Judging Paul H. Anderson Follow this and additional works at: http://open.mitchellhamline.edu/wmlr Recommended Citation Anderson, Paul H. (2013) "The Distinguished Life & Work of the Honorable John E. Simonett: Justice Simonett & the Art of Judging," William Mitchell Law Review: Vol. 39: Iss. 3, Article 7. Available at: http://open.mitchellhamline.edu/wmlr/vol39/iss3/7 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Reviews and Journals at Mitchell Hamline Open Access. It has been accepted for inclusion in William Mitchell Law Review by an authorized administrator of Mitchell Hamline Open Access. For more information, please contact [email protected]. © Mitchell Hamline School of Law Anderson: The Distinguished Life & Work of the Honorable John E. Simonett: THE DISTINGUISHED LIFE & WORK OF THE HONORABLE JOHN E. SIMONETT: JUSTICE SIMONETT & THE ART OF JUDGING† Moderator Tom Boyd Introduction Honorable Paul H. Anderson Presenters Honorable Alan C. Page Honorable Esther M. Tomljanovich Honorable Martha M. Simonett Diana Morrissey James Sheehy Chelsea Brennan DesAutels Nathan Sellers Tom Boyd: The title of the next panel is “Justice Simonett & the Art of Judging.” It will be moderated by Justice Paul Anderson. I have spoken with Justice Anderson about his plans for this part of the program, and I am still not entirely sure what he is going to do, but I think we should all expect something very dynamic and fluid. I think it will be reminiscent of what people used to do in the old days, something that I used to hear about from the 1960s—those things they called a “happening.” In any event, I think it will be very interesting. Justice Paul Anderson of course needs no introduction because in all likelihood he is already on a first-name basis with all of you in this room. He is a graduate of Macalester College and the University of Minnesota Law School. He had a distinguished career † This is an edited transcript from a daylong continuing legal education seminar at William Mitchell College of Law on March 23, 2012, honoring the legal career of the Honorable John E. Simonett. 726 Published by Mitchell Hamline Open Access, 2013 1 William Mitchell Law Review, Vol. 39, Iss. 3 [2013], Art. 7 2013] JUSTICE SIMONETT & THE ART OF JUDGING 727 with the LeVander law firm in South St. Paul. Governor Arne Carlson appointed him as chief judge of the court of appeals in 1992 and to the supreme court in 1994. Another member of this panel is the Honorable Alan Page, who also needs no introduction. Justice Page received his undergraduate degree from Notre Dame and his law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School. He practiced law with the firm of Lindquist & Vennum, then he worked at the Minnesota Attorney General’s office before joining the supreme court in January 1993. The third person on this panel, who again needs no introduction, is Esther Tomljanovich. Justice Tomljanovich received her law degree from the St. Paul College of Law, which is the predecessor of William Mitchell. She was Revisor of Statutes for the State of Minnesota, and in 1977 she was appointed as a district court judge in the Tenth Judicial District. She served on the Minnesota Supreme Court from 1990 to 1998. She is a founding member and former chair of the Minnesota Supreme Court Historical Society. We are also fortunate to have on our panel two former law clerks of Justice Simonett. Jim Sheehy received his B.A. and J.D., cum laude, from the University of Minnesota. Jim clerked for Justice Simonett from 1989 to 1990. He practiced law with two prestigious Minneapolis law firms from 1990 to 1997 and opened his own law office in 1997. We are also pleased to have Diana Young Morrissey with us today. Diana received her B.A. from the College of Saint Catherine and her law degree from Georgetown University. She clerked for Justice Simonett from 1983 to 1984. She practiced law with Faegre & Benson for many years and now practices with the Sapientia Law Group. Finally we are very pleased to have two of Justice Anderson’s law clerks with us—Chelsea Brennan DesAutels and Nathan Sellers. Chelsea and Nathan will share with us the reflections of some of Justice Simonett’s other law clerks. Now fasten your seat belts and hang on for what comes next. Justice Paul Anderson: Like any good oral advocate, Tom leaves me with some room when he describes what is going to happen next. He has cautioned you that it will be both dynamic and fluid. Both of these words are sufficiently ambiguous to leave all of us with http://open.mitchellhamline.edu/wmlr/vol39/iss3/7 2 Anderson: The Distinguished Life & Work of the Honorable John E. Simonett: 728 WILLIAM MITCHELL LAW REVIEW [Vol. 39:3 some doubt about what will come next, so I will start with an explanation. What we are going to try to do is to talk about John Simonett and the art of judging. I will make some preliminary remarks, then we will have comments from two of John’s former clerks, then two of my current law clerks will share the observations of some of John’s other law clerks who could not be with us today. The law clerk comments will be followed by some comments by two of John’s former colleagues on the supreme court. Because any discussion about John Simonett and the art of judging would be incomplete if we did not acknowledge that he and Doris had two daughters who also served Minnesota as part of our state’s judiciary, we will remember Anne Simonett and hear from Judge Martha Simonett. Then we will conclude by sharing with you some of John’s observations and insights into the art of judging through his own words. So let us get started. For me it is a real privilege to join all of you today as we honor the legacy and share our memories of one of our best—Minnesota Supreme Court Justice John Simonett. To many of us, John was a hero, mentor, and friend. I am one of those people who believe that we need heroes to inspire us. That is part of what we are doing today; we are seeking inspiration from the life of John Simonett and the work he has done. Reflecting on what a heroic person has accomplished can infuse us with a certain vision and purpose. John fits very easily into this heroic mold. John had many attributes that can inspire— wisdom, a keen intellect, a passion for the law, and a willingness to mentor others. He was an outstanding lawyer and justice. He knew the law, and when he clearly articulated what the law was, something he did very often, he could make life easier for all of us. As a mentor, John was always willing to share his wisdom and experience with others. He mentored many of us as legal professionals and many in our personal lives. What a privilege it is for me to say that I was a friend of John Simonett. Together we shared so many of his experiences and his stories about family, Minnesota history, and the law. It was something special to hear him tell stories about other lawyers he knew, especially stories about his longtime law partner in Little Falls, Gordon Rosenmeier. What a treat it was to hear him talk about being a country lawyer. How many times did he start a pithy story or a piece of advice Published by Mitchell Hamline Open Access, 2013 3 William Mitchell Law Review, Vol. 39, Iss. 3 [2013], Art. 7 2013] JUSTICE SIMONETT & THE ART OF JUDGING 729 with that phrase, “I am just a country lawyer”? When he would start out this way you needed to watch out and be on your toes because what was about to come after “just a country lawyer” was going to be profound, filled with common sense and wisdom, and on occasion something that would make you feel more humble. We are so fortunate to have had John serve us and our state as a supreme court justice. I see that Governor Quie is here, so I have an obligation to do something on John’s behalf at this point. After I was appointed to the court, I got to know John pretty well. I know what he would want me to do now. But first a preliminary point to provide context. Most of us here got to know John because he was a justice. We knew him in this role, we have read his opinions, and we have worked with him as colleagues, law clerks, and in many other capacities. In large part that is what this program is really about— focusing on John’s career as a justice. Many of us were actually able to watch John practice the art of judging. But the message I deliver while Governor Quie is still here precedes John’s career as a judge. It is about the process of becoming a justice on the supreme court and how becoming a justice is not something that just happens. Those of us who are privileged to have served on the court know that there is nothing certain or inevitable about getting here. As we celebrate John and his career in the law, there appears to be a certain inevitability about him becoming a justice.