|
Mary
Steenson DuFresne
(Mary Steenson
at time of publication).
Originally published in
the March 1997 issue.
Author: Charles E. Lundberg
Mary E.
Steenson comes to Hennepin County District Court with an range
of legal experience that is as deep as it is wide. Rarely has a
new Hennepin County judge brought to the bench such extensive
expertise in both the civil and criminal arenas.
For the
past 13 years, Mary has been a trial lawyer with the firm of
Bassford, Lockhart, Truesdell & Briggs, P.A., handling a
wide variety of professional liability, employment, and other
civil cases in the state and federal courts. She is one of only
a few women who have been certified as a civil trial specialist
and inducted into the Academy of Certified Trial Lawyers of
Minnesota.
Mary’s
civil trial experience follows substantial experience as a
criminal lawyer. For several years before she joined the
Bassford firm, Mary was an assistant state public defender for
the state of Minnesota, arguing cases before the Minnesota
Supreme Court.
Mary
was born in Champaign, Ill., and lived in Whitefish Bay, Wis.,
and Brantford, Ontario, for several years before her family
settled in Milwaukee. She went to college at the University of
Wisconsin in Madison, where she graduated in 1967 with a degree
in English. She then worked for several years as a writer-editor
for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and as an administrative
assistant for Westinghouse Learning Corporation. After starting
a family, Mary entered William Mitchell College of Law in 1975.
She graduated cum laude in 1979.
During
law school, Mary worked as a law clerk for C. Paul Jones in the
Minnesota Public Defender’s Office and started as a lawyer in
that office upon graduation in 1979. Paul Jones has nothing but
praise for Mary’s work at the public defender’s office.
"Mary was one of the most reliable lawyers I have ever
worked with. She was always prepared, took on any legal task
that had to be done, and always did superb work with a smile and
an outgoing personality," Jones said." The public in
general and the lawyers in Hennepin County are very fortunate to
have such a quality person on the bench."
During
her years as an appellate public defender, Mary also taught law
school, leading the criminal Appeals Clinic at William Mitchell.
During that time, the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines were
established, and the small public defender’s office handled
thousands of resentencing hearings of inmates incarcerated in
the state’s correction facilities. Mary interviewed inmates at
the prisons and handled parole revocation hearings.
In
1983, Mary joined the Bassford firm and started working
exclusively in the civil trial arena. She became a partner in
1988. She has tried all types of cases, with a primary emphasis
in professional liability and employment law. She has had a
special interest in sexual harassment law, having successfully
tried several harassment cases to verdict.
Mary
has served on several committees and in other capacities during
her years of practice, including the Hennepin County Bar
Association Ethics and Diversity Committees. She is a member of
Minnesota Women Lawyers, the Douglas Amdahl Inn of Court, and
the Academy of Certified Trial Lawyers of Minnesota.
Mary is
very proud of her children – Molly (25), Andy(22), and Ben
(19). Molly lives in San Francisco where she works as a producer
for the Internet. Andy and Ben attend college in the Twin
Cities.
A
couple of years ago, Mary began thinking about the possibility
of a judicial role. She was attracted to the opportunity to
provide public service in the law, and believed that her trial
experience and background in both civil and criminal law
qualified her to be a judge.
Mary’s
campaign in the 1996 primary and general elections was well
received by the community. The Star Tribune lauded her
candidacy: "Steenson’s intellectual power and her
familiarity with complex civil litigation could prove
indispensable to the court." Running a countywide election
campaign is a daunting task; Mary learned how difficult it is to
reach the voters in this most populated county. She won the
election decisively, however, defeating the incumbent judge 56
percent to 44 percent.
Her
partners and associates at the Bassford firm have decidedly
mixed feelings about Mary’s election to the bench. They hate
to lose a partner of Mary’s considerable talents and will miss
the daily contact with a good friend and comrade. On the other
hand, as trial lawyers, they are pleased to see such a
formidable lawyer join the Hennepin County court – even if
they will likely never be able to appear before her themselves.
Greer
Lockhart, Mary’s senior partner, put it this way: "Mary
is an outstanding trial lawyer. She is very bright, but she does
not carry the burden of a big ego, and she is thoughtful and
considerate of everyone. We are sorry to lose her, but the
community is gaining an outstanding judge." Lynn Truesdell,
another of Mary’s partners, echoed those sentiments:
"Mary brings to the bench that indispensable combination of
courtesy, good humor, and intellect so characteristic of, and so
much respected in, the very best judges. We let her go
reluctantly but confidently. We will miss her. Our law firm’s
loss is Hennepin County’s considerable gain."
Mary’s
election has been well received by her new colleagues on the
Hennepin County bench. Judge Pamela Alexander predicted that
Mary "will be a fabulous judge. She is extremely well
qualified." Judge Robert Schiefelbein made the point a
little differently, comparing Mary with the late Judge Susanne
Sedgwick, the first woman ever to serve on the Hennepin County
District Court. "I think Mary is a worthy successor to Sue
Sedgwick, whom we all admired and who was a great judge."
Judge Schiefelbein – who is himself retiring from office this
year – arranged for Mary to be sworn in to office in Judge
Sedgwick’s judicial robes. Judge Steenson’s response to this
touching gesture was characteristic of her approach to her new
role: "I just hope I can prove myself worthy of this
significant honor."
|
