Municipal judge managing dual identity

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In a world of hybrids, Steven Michael Cain seems to embody the legal version of the trend.

“I’ve got two careers: one private practice and one judicial,” said Cain, an attorney with Stippich Selin & Cain LLC, Cedarburg. He also serves as municipal judge for more than a dozen communities in Ozaukee and Washington counties.

Cain had 10 years’ experience with municipal prosecution and defense before joining his current firm and being elected a judge in 2009. Since then, he’s juggled his dual identity with a one-week-on, one-week-off schedule.

But, even then, it’s a challenge, he said.

His judicial seat is technically a half-time position. But, Cain said, “it probably takes up more time than that. And the court is kind of unique in that we travel.”

It’s a throwback to the days when judges traveled a circuit.

“The term circuit derived from traveling from county to county, and one of the Washington County circuit judges refers to me as the true circuit judge,” Cain said. “So, it’s a challenge, but that’s where smart phones and laptops come in.”

And let’s not forget working the occasional night, since his private practice work involves representing municipalities as far away as Kenosha.

But it’s a challenge he’s happy to face, he said, because the work is so rewarding.

As an attorney, he enjoys taking on people’s problems and finding solutions that erase their worry and concern.

As judge, Cain said, he most enjoys “trying to serve the common good and give people a good taste of what I think society expects of courts, as far as being fair and reasonable.”

It’s part of the reason he ran for judge, he said, to shape public perception of the courts by being an example on the bench. There are limits to what he can do, however, he said.

“The biggest challenge is working with juveniles,” Cain said. “Municipal courts – the way they’re constructed, we’re just not in a good position to provide services, formal probation, drug treatment, mental health treatment. For me, it’s personally disappointing. Those services aren’t there for them until it gets to be a formal criminal matter. It’s disheartening.”

Wisconsin Law Journal: What is the best part of being an attorney?

Steven Michael Cain: It may be cliché, but helping people is the best part. Whether it’s healthy or not, I like taking the client’s fear, concern, worry off their shoulders while I work to resolve the matter. There is something to be said about being a counselor; I think it is a big part of being an attorney.

WLJ: What do you consider your biggest achievement so far? Why?

Cain: Probably finishing three Ironman races. While I was very average in the time it took me to finish them, it proves that we all can do more than we think is possible. Uncomfortable things can often be the most rewarding things in the end and Ironman is just that.

WLJ: What object in your office means the most to you? Why?

Cain: I don’t keep sentimental things in my office, so it has to be my iPhone. I was a reluctant cell phone user early on, but with the advent of the smart phone I’m hooked. I couldn’t live without it with the dual role I keep. I have to be connected wherever I am.

WLJ: Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

Cain: At home, I seem to tell my two boys to “turn off the iPad” way too often. In court, “possession is not the same as ownership.”

WLJ: What was your most useful law school course? Why?

Cain: Although it was a practical course, I think the Public Defender’s Clinic through the Milwaukee Office of the State Public Defender was the most useful. Nothing was more eye-opening than being thrown into a courtroom, working with real clients and seeing the enormous challenges facing society and the criminal justice system.

WLJ: What was your least favorite course in law school? Why?

Cain: Tax. Enough said.

WLJ: What word in the English language do you wish you had invented?

Cain: “Three-peat.” I think Pat Riley made big money on that trademark.

WLJ: What is your greatest extravagance?

Cain: I have a problem with buying high-end outdoor gear. Buying cool gear as a lead-in to an outdoor adventure is half the fun for me.

WLJ: Finish this sentence: Happiness is …

Cain: Christmas morning. Nothing is better than sitting with my wife, Heather, and watching our two young boys tear open packages with the pure excitement and joy of the moment.