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Robert M. Small
Originally published in
the September
2006 issue.
Author: Brynn Rhodes
The Hon. Robert M. Small was
appointed on Feb. 1, 2006, to the Fourth Judicial District of
Minnesota. A native of New Jersey, Judge Small first came to
Minnesota as a U.S. Marine under somber circumstances. Although
military service in any arena can alter the life of an
individual under countless circumstances, Robert Small’s life
changed when his friend and colleague fell in Vietnam.
Small accompanied his slain
friend’s body back to the friend’s native state of Minnesota.
During their years of service in the military, attitudes in the
United States regarding Vietnam had become politically and
culturally charged. The United States was in turmoil. It would
be years later that the judge would look back carefully on that
period of his life and that period of U.S. history. Only then
would the hardships of young men and women serving on foreign
soil, and of civil and political unrest in cultures and
countries very different from the United States, be understood
from the perspective of a veteran and a public servant.
In 1968, this young man’s
attention was not on the political environment but instead was
focused on the personal challenges of grieving for his lost
friend and in understanding the previous four years’ experience
in the context of his own life.
Ending his Vietnam as well
as his Marine Corps service in 1968, the judge’s future was then
shaped by a chance introduction to a Minnesota woman, Renee,
whom he eventually married. The judge and his wife made their
home in Minnesota, where they have resided for 37 years—in a
way, a tribute to the life of his fallen friend those many years
ago.
After relocating to
Minnesota, Judge Small attended the College of St. Thomas in St.
Paul where he majored in sociology. He began working at the
Lino Lakes Department of Corrections, then a juvenile facility,
while attending college. It was there that he developed a real
interest in the law as a result of his experiences with the
criminal justice system.
Those experiences inspired
him to attend night school at the William Mitchell College of
Law while he worked days at the Veterans Administration (VA).
After his January 1975 graduation and after passing the bar, he
joined the VA’s Office of District Counsel at Fort Snelling as a
staff attorney. Judge Small then served as the administrative
assistant to the chief of staff with the U.S. Veterans
Administration Medical Center in Minneapolis from 1980 to 1981.
In 1981, Judge Small’s
career turned somewhat when he became an assistant U.S. attorney
for the District of Minnesota. He did trial work on a regular
basis, gaining both experience and opportunities that he
wouldn’t have had otherwise. Small served as an assistant U.S.
attorney in Minneapolis, a position he held from 1998 until his
appointment to the bench, except during 2001, when he was the
acting U.S. attorney for the district of Minnesota. The
highlight of his 25 years as an assistant U.S. attorney,
according to Small, was the opportunity to work with an
outstanding group of lawyers.
Judge Small didn’t always
envision himself on the bench. He had always thought judges
ought to be people experienced in the law from the broadest
possible perspective. He wasn’t sure that he was “good enough,
or smart enough,” but after serving in both the criminal and
civil division in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he began to
consider the possibility that he may have something to offer the
bench. He thought that he “might be able to do that.”
It is easy to sympathize
with Judge Small when he says, laughing, “that it wasn’t long
before I found out that I still had a lot to learn!” He credits
both excellent training programs and the mentorship of seasoned
judges for any success he may have had in those early days.
While new judges are expected to call their mentors with
questions, no matter how small, Judge Small commented that his
mentors were not only knowledgeable, they were also untiringly
helpful and patient.
His experience as a U.S.
attorney had already made him comfortable in courtrooms.
Despite that fact, Judge Small was surprised about the
significant difference in volume between state and federal
courts in his first four months on a civil rotation in suburban
courts. On his first “solo day” he faced 140 cases on the
docket. Despite the fact that some cases fall off the docket due
to ongoing negotiations, sizable dockets are the norm in
suburban civil courts, with Mondays often starting the week with
80 to 100 cases before the bench.
In spite of that initial
heavy caseload, Judge Small remains positive and content with
his work, life, and career choices. When asked how he would
advise the attorneys that come before him in court, Judge Small
prefaced his comment by saying, with sincerity, that both
prosecutors and defenders have been unbelievably helpful in
sharing information that they think he may need to make
decisions. With a broad smile, he added, “They should know,
however, that I stay up on the law, and that today, I think I
have the experience to know what
I’m doing.”
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