Nurturing Excellence: Lessons from a High School Mock Trial Competition

Mar 29, 2024

By William Aspinwall

A new generation of legal practitioners walked into the Marin County Superior Court on a Saturday morning in early February for Marin County’s Mock Trial competition. Frenetic and youthful energy filled the courthouse hallway with excitement. Morgan Daly, a local attorney in her third year of coaching the team at Archie Williams High School, gathered her students at the end of the hall for some last-minute instruction. She reminded her students that a witness’ credibility is always fair game on cross examination. With a final refresher on the distinction between binding cases versus merely persuasive cases, she sent her team into the courtroom to argue pretrial motions. They were ready.

SAVE-THE-DATE

Mar 29, 2024

CONGRATULATIONS, Judge Adams!

Adelante

Mar 29, 2024

By Hon. Mark Andrew Talamantes, Presiding Judge

Forward. For many years, our court experienced a period of stability with a full contingent of judges and court commissioners presiding in 14 fully staffed departments. Our court budget, while tight, was stable, and our court leadership was unwavering in our commitment to serving the people of Marin County.

State Public Defender Association Honors Marin Public Defender with Program of the Year Award

Mar 29, 2024

By By Rachael Keast, Deputy Public Defender and Immigration Attorney at Marin County Public Defender’s Office

The California Association of Public Defenders (CPDA) has announced that its Program of the Year award will go to the Marin County Public Defender’s Office for its innovative and collaborative program to aid clients and community members in obtaining their driver’s licenses, known as the DMV Liaison and Outreach Program. In its award letter, the CPDA recognized that the program had not only “helped to transform many lives,” but that it also improved “society at large by helping prevent crime.”

Transitions

Mar 28, 2024

By Dave Winnett

The Greek philosopher Heraclitus is credited with the philosophical observation that everything is in flux and constantly changing, memorialized in his quotation: “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man.”

Change and Transformation

Mar 28, 2024

By Scott Buell

From Greek philosopher Heraclitus to Mahatma Gandhi to David Bowie to Taylor Swift, the great thinkers and/or pop stars of their times appear to agree the only constant in life is change; and that change needs to be embraced head on. But really how much change is there at the Marin County Bar Association? We had a change in the Presidency this year, but we transition to a new President every year. Likewise, the make-up of the Board of Directors changes annually by roughly one third.