McMahon fights for her clients by getting personal

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Maura McMahon wants to know every client’s story. Throughout the past 12 years in the State Public Defender’s Waukesha office, she has advocated for women, children and the mentally ill, but the often-troubling details of those cases have done little to dim her bright outlook.

“When she describes a client or she just hears a name pop up, she says, ‘Oh, what a lovely person,’” said Samuel Benedict, regional attorney manager, adding that he never doubts McMahon’s opinions of clients are genuine.

“She knows the details of their lives. It’s not just a throwaway line,” he said, “because she basically remembers everything about them.”

That commitment to building personal relationships with clients has helped McMahon become a persuasive storyteller in the courtroom.

“She finds the compassion in peoples’ lives,” he said, “and she’s able to translate it in a way that anybody can understand.”

Her dedication also extends into responsibilities as local attorney manager and to volunteering within her community. In all her interactions with younger attorneys, McMahon said, she strives to pass on the lessons learned from her own mentor years ago.

“It is really rewarding to watch younger, very skilled lawyers in the practice learning to be advocates and good people,” she said.

But McMahon said she doesn’t pay attention to the details of a client’s life just to gain the sympathy of a judge or jury. Some clients, especially juveniles, are more concerned about the non-legal aspects of their situations, she said, such as having disappointed family members, and those worries can be a distraction from contributing to their own defense.

“You can’t really do a good job for them until you learn what the personal ramifications are,” she said.

Benedict pointed to one example of McMahon’s commitment to the emotional well-being of a client as being indicative of her constant efforts: A client was being held in a juvenile facility that does not allow visitation, but McMahon argued family contact would be instrumental to the client’s mental health and won visitation rights.

“Little victories along the way make a big quality-of-life difference for the client,” he said.

If she is able to help navigate one of those more personal aspects of a criminal case, McMahon said, she can gain greater trust from the client.

“You get to know a person on a level that you wouldn’t if they felt you were just putting them in a box,” she said.