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Jeannice M. Reding
Originally published in
the July/August 2006 issue.
Author: Lynne Torgerson
On Jan. 19, 2006, Gov.
Pawlenty appointed the Hon. Jeannice M. Reding to the Fourth
Judicial District. I had the pleasure of interviewing Judge
Reding on the first day she actually sat on the bench when she
presided over misdemeanor court at Southdale, and I learned a
great deal about her.
Judge Reding was born
in 1962 in Park Falls, Wis., and she grew up in Green Bay, Wis.
She graduated from Green Bay East High School in 1980.
Thereafter, Judge Reding attended the University of Wisconsin,
Madison. In 1984, she graduated with a bachelor of arts degree
in journalism, and she earned her juris doctor degree, cum
laude, from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1990.
After law school, Judge
Reding joined Best & Flanagan, LLP, in Minneapolis where, as a
member of the Civil Litigation Department, her practice involved
family law. Judge Reding fondly remembers her days at Best &
Flanagan where she enjoyed the camaraderie and support of
colleagues. Even though she left the firm nine years ago, she
still has good friends there.
In 1997, Judge Reding
became an administrative law judge with the Office of
Administrative Hearings. In this position, she traveled
throughout the state presiding over child support hearings. In
1999, it was decided that her duties should fall within the
judicial branch of government, and she became a child support
magistrate for the Fourth Judicial District. The job remained
essentially the same, but she received a new title.
Beginning in 2002,
Judge Reding’s duties included filling in as a referee in the
family court division. In 2004, she became a full-time family
court referee in the Fourth Judicial District largely taking
over Referee Milton Dunham’s caseload upon his retirement. As
a family court referee she presided over divorce proceedings,
custody proceedings, paternity cases, post-decree motions,
contempt hearings, and domestic-abuse-related cases, including
order for protection hearings. The governor observed that “[a]s
a Hennepin County District Court referee, Jeannice has proven
that she can handle the caseload efficiently while giving each
individual case personal attention.…She has demonstrated her
potential to be an outstanding district court judge through her
performance as a referee.”
Judge Reding was one of
the founding members of the Minnesota American Indian Bar
Association, along with the Hon. Robert A. Blaeser, also of the
Fourth Judicial District. In fact, Judge Blaeser, who at the
time he was appointed in 1995 was the only American Indian judge
in the state of Minnesota, was an encouragement to Judge Reding
as she was making her decision to seek a judgeship. The
association, which was incorporated in 1992, includes American
Indian attorneys and non-Indian attorneys. Keeping in mind that
Indian nations are sovereign nations, the association’s members
meet regularly to address Indian law issues—issues facing native
communities and attorneys. Judge Reding also is an enrolled
member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Nation.
Family is important to
Judge Reding. She resides in Plymouth with her husband, Troy,
and their three children, Eli, 15, Elizabeth, 11, and Sam, 9.
Her husband is a general manager for a large, popular restaurant
chain. Judge Reding is also very close to her sister, whom she
considers her best friend.
Many of her
extracurricular duties involve taking her children to activities
and volunteering at her children’s schools. She is an active
member of her church where she is the nursery coordinator and a
Sunday school teacher. She has also been actively involved in
hosting homeless families at her church. Judge Reding has been
a board member of Family and Children’s Services in Minneapolis
and a guardian ad litem for children of tribal members in the
tribal court of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community.
Her hobbies include
gardening, swimming, and rug hooking, and she loves to read.
She also loves to travel. One of her favorite places is the
Philippines. This summer, she and her husband are looking
forward to taking their children, who are good travelers, to
Europe for a vacation.
Judge Reding continued
with much of her prior duties as a family court referee through
March of 2006 because a replacement could not be immediately
found. Thereafter, she attended judicial orientation. Because
of her background in family law, Judge Reding actually taught
other newly appointed judges the family law portion of
orientation. Other orientation training included sitting in
with other judges as they presided.
Judge Reding thoroughly
enjoys family law. She sees lots of interesting cases in the
family law area. The cases are intriguing because they often
involve power and violence. She feels that some of the cases
would make great Shakespearean plays. Judge Reding has noticed
that family law cases tend to last considerably longer than
criminal cases, where appearances can take only five minutes.
Not having been exposed to the area of criminal law in the past,
Judge Reding expects there to be a big learning curve. Her goal
is to treat everyone respectfully and equally. She also hopes
to be seen as fair and even-tempered.
A description of Judge
Reding may include the following: well-balanced,
middle-of-the-road, wife, mom, soccer-mom, lawyer, and judge.
Welcome, Judge Reding.
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