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NEW HAMPSHIRE
An Official Publication
of the New Hampshire
Bar Association
J 1 0u t m r tl p sn t sio ui d usy .. N
June 19, 2019 Supporting members of the legal profession and their service to the public and the justice system. Vol. 30, N o. 1
Attorney General MacDonald
Nominated as Chief Justice
By Anna Berry
New Hampshire Attorney General
Gordon MacDonald temporarily stepped
down from his po-
sition on June 6
after he was nomi-
nated by Governor
Chris Sununu to
succeed Chief Jus-
tice Robert Lynn in
leading the state's
highest court. The
Executive Council
will hold a public
hearing on the Su-
preme Court nomi-
nation on Wednesday, June 26 at 10 a.m.
in the Executive Council chambers at the
Statehouse.
MacDonald delegated his duties to
Deputy Attorney General Jane Young
during the nomination process.
I believe it is in the best interest of
this Office, as well as the people and insti-
tutions we serve, for me to delegate tem-
porarily my duties as Attorney General to
[Young] while the nomination is pend-
ing, MacDonald wrote in a public letter.
In my opinion, this unique circumstance
constitutes 'cause' under the meaning of
the statute [RSA 7:3].
Lynn will retire from the Supreme
Court on August 23, in advance of his
70th birthday, at which time he is obli-
gated by state law to retire.
I have known Gordon MacDonald
for many years, Lynn, who was sworn
in as chief justice in April 2018, said in
a press release from the Governor's of-
fice. He is truly a great person and an
outstanding lawyer. He is smart, hard-
working, and thoughtful. His extensive
experience in private law practice, his
leadership of the Attorney General's Of-
fice - probably the State's largest law
firm - his commitment to public service,
and his temperament and fair mindedness
make him eminently well-qualified to
serve as the next Chief Justice of the New
Hampshire Supreme Court.
Sununu praised MacDonald's leader-
ship skills and independence over the past
two years in his role as attorney general.
JUSTICE continued on page 9
PRACTITIONER PROFILE
Steinfield: A Specialty in Storytelling
By Kathie Ragsdale
Friends and colleagues call Joseph D.
Steinfield a brilliant trial lawyer, teacher
and writer.
He calls himself a storyteller.
But he's a storyteller whose clients
have ranged from Julia Child to the Mas-
sachusetts State Democratic Party to the
New Hampshire House Judiciary Com-
mittee, which hired him in 2000 as special
prosecutor for the highly publicized im-
peachment trial of the chief justice of the
New Hampshire Supreme Court.
That's what a trial lawyer does;
you're a storyteller, says the practitioner
of almost 50 years. You get paid to tell
stories and you try to tell them in plain
English.
The lawyering urge was implanted
in him by his father, who owned a small
textile business in Steinfield's home town
of Claremont and advised him to become
an attorney, because then if you feel like
it you can hang your hat on the back of a
door and go fishing, and that sounded good
to me, Steinfield jokes.
After graduating from Claremont's
Stevens High School in 1957, he went on
to Brown University, and then to Harvard
Law School, shortly afterward landing a
position with the prestigious Boston law
firm of Hill & Barlow.
Hill & Barlow had a long history of
supporting unpopular causes and it pro-
duced governors Dukakis, Weld and Pat-
rick, Steinfield says. I was drawn to the
firm because it had very good values and
very good trial lawyers and that is what I
wanted to become.
STORYTELLING continued on page 8
Opinions............4-5 NH Court News ..............30-36
NHBA News.........6-15 Classifieds.......................36-38
Practice Area Section .....19-29 NHBA.CLE......................39-43
Periodical Postage paid at Concord, NH 03301
T-minus 11 days. The annual attorney
licensure renewal deadline is Monday,
July 1. Don't delay! Sign into the My NH
Bar portal today at nhbar.org. Page 2
Lawyers & Texting. The Bar's Ethics
Committee provides guidance on modern
communications in a new, ongoing series
of Ethics Corner articles. PAGE 5
Centennial Surprise. The Bar's oldest
member receives a special visit from his
alma mater. PAGE 11
Golfing for Good. Register your team for
the Quid Pro Bono Golf Tournament on
August 8. PAGE 15
Municipal & Governmental Law and
Intellectual Property Law
Counterfeiting in an age of globalization,
cease-and-desist letters, new laws that
may affect local governments - and
more - are covered in this month's prac-
tice area section. PAGES 12-29
New Resources for North Country.
Expanding access to justice at the
Littleton library. PAGE 30
INSIDE: Remembering Justice Batchelder (Page 16) &
Honoring 50 Years of Practice (Special supplement)
THE DOCKET](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.barjournals/nhbn0030&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)