1. What technology or trend are you most excited about for the future?
The use of video technology in the court system. Traditionally, nearly everyone participating in court proceedings needed to appear in person; this continues to be necessary for trials or other hearings involving testimony. Many other types of court proceedings, however, may be conducted efficiently and effectively by video. Among many other benefits, this technology allows the courts to process cases with less delay, enables attorneys who practice in multiple counties to handle more cases, and offers a significant convenience to individual litigants and witnesses, who otherwise would miss work and incur the expense of traveling to a courthouse. Victims may also avoid the trauma of appearing in the same courtroom with defendants who assaulted, victimized, or abused them.
2. Favorite Wisconsin sports memory?
The Badgers’ Rose Bowl win on New Year’s Day, 1994. It was their first Rose Bowl in 31 years, and it was my first year of law school at the University of Wisconsin.
3. What is the last book you read?
I am currently reading The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz, by Erik Larson. While the broader story is well-known, the author tells an engrossing story with meticulously researched and newly-discovered details about Churchill’s war strategy, advisors, and family during a time of crisis when liberty was under attack. Britain’s refusal to surrender to the totalitarianism of the National Socialists should be studied by every generation.