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30 Counties Are
Missing: Greening Legal Deserts in Rural New Mexico
Date: Friday May 31, 2024 Time: Noon - 1 p.m. Credits: 1.0 EIJ (Equity in Justice Credit) |
Join three of New Mexico’s District Court Judges for a webinar on barriers to rural justice in our state. Despite the profound need for civil legal access in daily life, there are critical gaps in access across New Mexico known as “legal deserts.” While New Mexico ranks as the 5th largest state geographically, it is 46th in population with about 2.1 million residents. Out of New Mexico’s 33 counties 3 have no attorneys, 5 have less than 10 attorneys, and 6 have 20 or fewer attorneys. The lion’s share of attorneys is located in 3 counties along the Rio Grande Corridor.
Like many states, New Mexico has engaged in efforts to address this growing legal gap, and the panel of judges will explore New Mexico’s current efforts to “green the legal deserts” and facilitate access to justice for everyone. Efforts include the recently launched Rural Justice Initiative, Justice Stations, and multiple Pro Bono efforts. New Mexico is advancing technological access, increasing the participation of attorneys in pro bono efforts, and creatively working to increase the pool of attorneys providing critical legal services.
Speakers:
Hon. Curtis R. Gurley is the current Chief Judge of the Eleventh Judicial District. He is a member of the New Mexico Judiciary Budget Committee. Judge Gurley practiced law in New Mexico for thirty years, before his appointment to the Bench. He has tried cases in New Mexico, Colorado, and Federal Courts. During his time in practice, Judge Gurley was appointed in 1996 as an initial member of the Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission, serving until 2002. He served on the Disciplinary Board of the New Mexico Supreme Court, beginning in 2012, serving as Chair from 2016 to 2019. He also has served on multiple Judicial Nominating Commissions for the local judiciary, the Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court.
Hon. Donna J. Mowrer is Chief Judge for the Ninth Judicial District. She has served as a District Judge since 2011 and handles criminal, domestic, delinquency, civil and abuse and neglect proceedings. Judge Mowrer was the first woman appointed and elected as a District Court Judge in this district, and is also the first woman Chief Judge of the District. Judge Mowrer currently serves on the Rural Justice Collaborative Advisory Board for the National Center for State Courts. She previously chaired the Rural Justice Initiative Committee for the New Mexico Supreme Court. Judge Mowrer also previously chaired both the Innovation Team for the New Mexico Supreme Court and the Ad Hoc Committee for the Recruitment and Retention of Attorneys for Rural New Mexico. She has recently presented at the National Association for Court Management’s (NACM) conference, speaking on “Access to Justice Considerations in Remote Proceedings”. She also recently presented on “Doing More with Less: Five Ways Rural Courts are Closing the Rural Justice Gap” and “Public Libraries as Partners in Access to Justice” at the National Association for Presiding Judges and Court Executive Officer’s (NAPCO) conference.
Hon. Erin B. O’Connell graduated from the University of New Mexico School of Law. She was a law clerk for two years for Justice Charles W. Daniels of the New Mexico Supreme Court. Following her clerkship, and until appointed to the bench, she was in private practice as a trial and appellate lawyer. Judge O’Connell was appointed to the civil bench at the Second Judicial District Court in February 2019. She is the Chair of the New Mexico Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Commission, and Co-Chair of the Second Judicial District Court Pro Bono Committee.
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