Kern County’s specific legal needs, which differ vastly from those of California’s other regions, will be represented at the State Bar’s highest level after a local prosecutor was appointed last week to chair its board of trustees — the first time a Bakersfield attorney will preside over the organization.
Deputy District attorney Brandon Stallings was appointed by the California Supreme Court to become chairman of the State Bar Board of Trustees. The board’s duties include creating policies to regulate lawyers’ conduct and determine which programs to fund. He has been a trustee since 2015 and served most recently served as vice chairman.
Stallings, who said Friday many qualified applicants applied, was excited to be appointed.
“My emotion was excitement (after hearing of my appointment) for the job ahead, excitement to serving in this new role and really just gratitude — very thankful for being entrusted with this responsibility,” Stallings added in a phone interview.
As a prosecutor since 2009, Stallings said his recent appointment aligns with a prosecutor’s responsibility to seek justice in service to the community. Stallings serves in the Office of Traffic Safety, which prosecutes DUIs causing murder and other intoxicated driving incidents.
Kern County District attorney Cynthia Zimmer said in an email Stallings can represent local values and a prosecutor’s ethics while serving in groups like the State Bar Board of Trustees. He operates at the highest ethical standard, which she said makes him a naturally good fit for public service.
“Mr. Stallings’ commitment to justice and the practice of law is evidenced not only in his work as a prosecutor handling serious DUI cases, but also his longstanding and continuing work with the Board of Trustees,” she added.
A spokesman for the Judicial Council of California said the California Supreme Court, which appointed Stallings, doesn’t comment beyond the appointment action.
Locally, Stallings has served as director of the Kern County Bar Association. His volunteer work showed him the need for young lawyers to have a voice at the county and state level.
In his prior service on the bar, Stallings was vice chair of its Civility Commission. There seemed to be instability in law practice and attorneys “doing bad things” or being uncivil in front of judges, he said.
The commission learned incivility is tied to bias, appearing implicitly or explicitly toward women, minorities and people of different sexual orientations, Stallings said. The board took input from experts and the general public, culling through proposals to approve rules attorneys must follow. The state Supreme Court must now decide whether to approve those rules, he added.
He’d like to take a look at recruiting more lawyers in rural areas in hopes of remedying the lack of access for migrant and low-income communities.
“I’m really, really happy to have that voice to be able to advocate for representation,” Stallings added.
It seemed the board chair’s position always went to attorneys from the Bay Area or Southern California, leaving out the Central Valley, Bakersfield defense attorney David Torres said. He sits on a committee within the California State Bar and is Stallings’ father-in-law.
A Bakersfield-based attorney can perhaps advocate for funds to build another courthouse in Kern County or divert money to projects helping underrepresented individuals, Torres said. Stallings understands the system through his long involvement with the State Bar and he understands lawyers’ needs, Torres said.
“He … is a fair leader with the wisdom and knowledge … to execute plans (that are) fair and balanced,” Torres said of Stallings.
Stallings hopes to ensure the public has confidence in the board’s decisions and that the state bar’s employees are equipped to protect the public.
“(I hope to leave) behind a (state) bar that’s in a better position than when I took over,” Stallings said.
You can reach Ishani Desai at 661-395-7417. You can also follow her at @_ishanidesai on Twitter.
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