Commentary: Life After the Bench Means a Return to Lawyering John S. Holston Jr. New Jersey Law Journal 03-24-2008 After 23 years and eight months on the Superior Court bench in New Jersey, I retired. In my case, I returned "home" as of counsel to the law firm I founded 36 years ago with my brother. When I assumed my duties as a trial judge, the law firm had only three members. On my return in September 2007, there were 10. While on the Superior Court bench, I served in the three trial divisions of civil, criminal and family, with my longest tenure (12 1/2 years) in civil, and served my last three years in the appellate division. Having not practiced law for two decades, it was with some trepidation that I returned. I have found, however, that the knowledge of the substantive law that I gained during my three years on the appellate division has served me well in consulting on legal issues with lawyers in my law firm, in editing and writing trial and appellate briefs, in doing original research and in developing an appellate consultation practice. Like many of my retired colleagues, I am developing a private mediation and arbitration practice in the numerous areas of civil litigation. I find that the skills I developed conducting settlement conferences as a civil trial judge have helped me facilitate settlements as a mediator. The difference is that as a mediator I must rely on my persuasive skills to induce the parties to settle, since I no longer enjoy the authority of judicial office. Although I have not yet acted as a neutral arbitrator, I hope that the numerous bench trials I conducted as a trial judge will have given me the skills to be an effective arbitrator. Without doubt, I find the return to law practice challenging. As an appellate division judge reviewing decisions of the trial courts and as a trial judge deciding summary judgment motions, I had the advantage of comprehensive trial briefs from both sides. In my law firm duties, I find that the writing and editing of briefs requires a good deal of original research, particularly when a novel issue is being advanced or defended. As a judge, I had the luxury of a law clerk to assist with research and to edit my tentative opinions. My law clerk checked my citations for accuracy and examined the subsequent history of a case or statute to make certain the law I was relying on was current and accurate. I am now required to perform these tasks myself. On the appellate level, my "side judges" were able to critically edit the opinions I authored and to give me guidance on how to best treat the issues on appeal. In law practice, I am solely responsible for finding the applicable law to support the legal positions our firm is advocating. In law practice I have also had to adjust to the role of an advocate of our clients' positions. My role as a judge was as a neutral finder of fact and law. I find, however, my
past judicial service has enabled me to reliably predict the perspective of the trial and appellate judges who will be deciding the issues our firm is advocating. As a result, I am able to arrange the arguments in the briefs I am writing or editing in such a way as to advance our client's strongest positions. Where I find myself in need of continuing legal education is in the transactional practice of law in areas such as the preparation of wills and trusts, agreements of sale, deeds, notes, mortgages, contracts, business documents and the like. For the most part, however, I have found the transition from the bench to the practice of law a pleasant and enlightening experience. I feel useful to the lawyers in my law firm and to members of the bar who have retained my services and find the return to the practice of law rewarding and challenging. In my view, there clearly is a stimulating professional life in the law awaiting a judge after a career on the bench. John S. Holston Jr. is of counsel with Holston, MacDonald, Uzdavinis, Eastlack, Ziegler & Lodge in Woodbury, N.J. He retired from the appellate division in September 2007 and previously was a Gloucester County Superior Court judge.