December 2023

Pictured left to right: Anthony V. Fernando, Michael McKeon, Karen S. Kunick, Mariah N. Mandy, Jerry W. Brown, and Veronica I. Brestensky. 

See more photos from the ceremony at the end of this newsletter!

Pictures left to right: back row - Brandon Copeland, Brittany Henderson, Mariah Mandy, Thomas Trgovac, middle row - Mark Henicle, Barbara Henicle, Shannon Martin, Hannah Brewer, La Tasha Williams, Khalil Henriques, front row - Allison Freeman, Beverly Doneker, Alexandra Sipe, and Kristin Nicklas.

On November 10th FCBA YLD hosted its second Veterans Day WFH event. Franklin County veterans and their spouses were invited to the FCBA office to work with attorney volunteers and our WFH cooridinator Alexandra Sipe to obtain essential documents: a Will, Living Will, and Health Care and Financial Powers of Attorney (or any combination thereof). This event was co-sponsored by Bybel Rutledge LLP and the FCBA YLD.

The Franklin County Bar Association's Women's Club decorated the Courthouse planters on Lincoln Way East on November 17th. The Women's Club has been planting seasonal flowers and decorating for Christmas and Ice Fest since 2013. Their service project is led by Marty Walker. Beautiful job, ladies!

Pictured left to right: Marty Walker, Rachel Schreck, Nancy Meyers, Sara Grove, Alysa Young, Allison Freeman, and Victoria Beard.

Franklin County Legal Services is conducting a survey to help us better understand the legal needs in our community. If you could please take a moment to answer JUST 3 questions, it would be most appreciated.

Please click on the link to take the SHORT survey:

ENGLISH https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2NXBQZ6

ESPAÑOL https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/C2NFBN3

KREYÒL AYISYEN https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/HFQK9VJ

Children in dependency proceedings are caught in a system that functions best when all parties are represented. Despite the high stakes, Franklin County is facing a shortage of attorneys willing to be appointed in dependency matters. President Judge Meyers highlighted the shortage during the Franklin County Bar Association’s annual meeting this past Friday. As Mahesh Rao, the Juvenile Justice Master, noted, “There is an acute shortage of parents’ counsel; that the entire current team of counsel is very well qualified and always willing to help newer attorneys who join the team.”

I spoke with Kristen Hamilton recently about her work in dependency where she generally serves as Guardian ad litem and occasionally as parents’ counsel. I asked Kristen what she found most rewarding in doing dependency work given the difficulties involved when working with families. She responded:

Honestly, like many people there are of course days where I wonder why we bother, because some problems feel so insurmountable – some cases are just so troublesome or heartbreaking. But you end up being part of solutions for that family or that child. You watch strangers rally around people to help them where they can, and when that help is not enough, you have people taking children into their homes and giving them the next best option through a permanent new family. You see the best and worst all the time, which though difficult, makes you appreciate the really great outcomes that families and children have only because of this system and all the people who are part of it.  

As a family law and immigration practitioner, I can relate to Kristen’s sentiment that guiding families through very difficult circumstances brings with it its own reward. Additionally, children in Franklin County are depending upon the Court and the lawyers involved to be advocating for them and what is in their best interest. Kristen further reassured me that there are many materials out there for an attorney wanting to learn and do dependency work. There are training courses available through AOPC as well as CLEs and presentations. The attorneys locally who do dependency work are always happy to provide guidance and mentor a new attorney. Kristen noted that some attorneys new to dependency work observed proceedings prior to taking an appointment.

Another piece to the dependency puzzle is ensuring that the process remains trauma informed. Understanding trauma and how it impacts our clients and ourselves is an ever-evolving area of the legal world. For those thinking about working in Dependency, ensuring that they are educated about trauma as well as secondary or vicarious trauma is crucial. Further, as Kristen noted, it would be beneficial in dependency cases to have more trauma informed spaces for our families and children. Franklin County Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division recently financed the purchase of three Youth Interview Kits to assist the Bench when working with traumatized children. These steps towards trauma-informed lawyering help both the families and children interacting with the judicial system but also help us, the practitioner and is crucial to working in the field of dependency.

Thinking about taking on a dependency appointment may seem like a daunting task, but there are resources available and supportive colleagues ready to lend an ear. The work is very rewarding, and the children of Franklin County need the dependency system to work properly. As Kristen summarized, dependency is an “interwoven system and when one part is not working properly, it can impact the whole system.”  

The ABA has this good article: The Legal Burnout Solution: Strategies for a Trauma-Informed Law Practice (americanbar.org)

The Honorable Todd M. Sponseller, the Honorable Angela R. Krom, the Honorable Shawn D. Meyers, the Honorable Jeremiah D. Zook, and the Honorable Mary Beth Shank. President Judge Shawn D. Meyers presiding.

The Honorable Jeremiah D. Zook moving for the admission of Anthony V. Fernando.

District Attorney Laura J. Kerstetter moving for the admission of Jerry W. Brown and Veronica I. Brestensky.

The Honorable Todd M. Sponseller moving for the admission of Mariah N. Mandy.

Chief Public Defender Casey S. Bogner moving for the admission of Karen S. Kunick.

Brittany R. Henderson moving for the admission of Michael McKeon.

FCBA president Tony Cosentino give remarks to new admittees.

PBA vice president Kristen B. Hamilton gives remarks.

YLD chair Jason E. Piatt give remarks.