Court of Appeals judge to retire after 37 years

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Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge Richard Brown announced Monday his plans to retire Aug. 1.

Brown is the last of the court’s 12 original judges and has been on the appeals court for 37 years. He is chief judge and serves District 2.

Because Brown’s term does not expire until July 21, 2018, a replacement will be appointed. According to an email attributed to Laurel Patrick, spokeswoman for Gov. Scott Walker, Brown’s retirement announcement triggers the appointment process, and the next step will be to put out a request for applicants.

According to a news release, he plans to spend his retirement visiting his grandchildren in Maryland and Georgia and taking voice lessons.

Reached Monday, Brown said his advice to law students and lawyers just starting their career is to keep an open mind.

“Don’t be afraid to get into an area you think you know nothing about,” Brown said, “because you could end up being an authority on that subject.”

During his time in private practice, Brown focused on construction law, which he said he new nothing about prior to making it his area of focus.

Brown said he plans to be a reserve judge and is planning to get involved with State Bar.

“I’m not going off into the sunset,” he said.