by Eva Dameron
Daily Lobo
After two interims, UNM is getting a permanent University lawyer.
UNM needs stability in the University Counsel's Office, said Jo Ann Stringfield. Stringfield is the interim senior associate University counsel and one of three University counsel finalists.
The counsel handles all legal matters regarding the University.
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The 10-person search committee started with about 45 applicants for the position of counsel, said Susan Carkeek, associate vice president of Human Resources.
"It'll be a very good thing when the process of selecting a new University counsel is completed," Stringfield said.
There have been two interim counsels since September 2004 when Nick Estes resigned.
Applicants had to meet several minimum qualifications, including 10 years of experience as a senior attorney; excellent written and verbal communication skills; a background in education law, government law, health care law or expertise pertaining to the University Counsel Office's areas of practice; and a contribution to the University's commitment to diversity.
Carkeek said it has taken so long to get to this point of the process because they evaluated so many applicants.
"At a Board of Regents meeting, some of them were concerned about the diversity of the applicant pool, and if we had good representation of women and minorities in the pool," Carkeek said.
Stringfield said as a woman who has been in positions of authority and increased visibility, she wants to be hired based on merit and not the need to fill in a demographic.
"If I'm selected for this position, it should be based on my qualifications," she said. "I've served in top positions where women are not represented."
Stringfield said she was an Air Force judge advocate before coming to UNM.
"A lot of Air Force experience is directly transferable to the University," she said. "Both of them are very much like a small city where you have a full array of responsibilities."
Interim University Counsel Scot Sauder said he applied for the permanent position but did not make the final cut. Sauder has been interim counsel since August.
Carkeek said it would be inappropriate to comment on Sauder.
Some of his responsibilities were to complete the consolidation of the various offices of University Counsel and develop better systems for operations - including more automated systems for managing the outside lawyers and in-house lawyers, he said.
Other finalists for the position are Kirk Miller and Patrick Apodaca.
Apodaca said he specializes in corporate law and has been listed in Best Lawyers in America, an annual publication.
"The selection is made by recommendation of your peers," he said. "Clients for whom you do work are interviewed."
He said he applied for the position because it would be interesting and challenging to serve as counsel for a premier institution of higher learning.
"The other aspect has to do with a lifelong interest in serving the general community," Apodaca said. "I've been in private practice a long time. I ran for attorney general of New Mexico twice. I also served in positions of public trust. I was on the state investment counsel."
He said all this is to indicate he has always had a strong interest in serving the larger community and the public.
Miller could not be reached for comment. According to the UNM Today Web site, Miller has 25 years of experience in private law and the not-for-profit health care industry. For the past nine years, he has been senior vice president, general counsel, and secretary at Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Kaiser Foundation Hospitals.
Finalists will be interviewed the week of March 20.
