Stephanie Potter Barrett is not the only licensed attorney in her family, but she is the only woman among them.
Barrett is a Texarkana native who will assume a seat on the Arkansas Court of Appeals on the first day of 2021. Her father, an uncle, three male cousins, her stepfather, a male cousin-in-law and her husband all have law degrees. "Needless to say, most dinner conversations turn to law," Stephanie said.
Barrett's family has been in Texarkana since 1900.
"My grandmother, Wilma Greer Potter, was a very important influence on my life. Through her example, words and actions she taught me the importance of an education, dedication and hard work," Stephanie said. "She worked at the Dillard's department store until she was 82 years old. Although she did not have the opportunity to go to college, she and her husband, Jimmie Potter, a lifelong employee of Borden's Milk, worked hard to ensure that all three of their children went to college."
Stephanie graduated with honors from Arkansas High School in 1991 and from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville with a B.A. degree in 1995. In addition, she attended George Washington University to study international relations. She also studied foreign language at the Monterey Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California. During law school, she studied comparative law at Oxford Univeristy in Oxford, England. She is also a 1997 graduate of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
As a young lawyer in a family flush with role models, Stephanie was eager to make a name for herself after law school. She said the playing field for women has leveled some and doesn't mind it too much when someone points out her gender. But when her ability as a legal professional is questioned, she remembers it.
"I have never been offended by sexist comments like, 'Hey sugar,' 'baby doll,' 'sweet thing,' 'hey hot stuff' - all names I have been called in the courtroom - but I know that many female lawyers are," she said.
Stephanie remembered being a put off when she arrived at court ready to try her first case before a jury in Bowie County, Texas. It was a personal injury trial and the judge was Bill Peek.
"This trial landed in my lap when a man walked into my office and said, 'Two different lawyers have had my case, completed discovery, but won't take it to trial. The last one said you need to find a new attorney that just wants the experience. I asked who the newest lawyer in town was and they said you," Stephanie said.
It wasn't exactly a glowing recommendation but Stephanie was the newest lawyer in town and she did want the experience. She recalled the trial preparation and giving herself a "pep talk" as she drove to the Bowie County courthouse.
"I walked into the Judge's chambers to find the insurance attorney from Tyler and the judge laughing and talking. When I walked in, Judge Peek shook his head making a tsking sound and said, 'Honey, your daddy shouldn't have sent you here by yourself,'" Stephanie said. "That statement really took the wind out of my sails and I was offended that the judge did not think I had the ability. I replied something to the effect that I had received my law degree and passed the bar all by myself and this was my client not my dad's."
The jury returned a verdict in her client's favor. She had won the first case she tried.
"I remember packing up my materials and looking at Judge Peek and saying, 'Well, Judge, how did I do all by myself? He said, 'You did fine, honey.'"
Stephanie said that upon reflection, she believes the judge was just concerned for a new lawyer as she would have been if she observed a recently-licensed young attorney trying a first case without the help of a more experienced member of the bar.
Barrett will be leaving her position as Miller County's elected prosecuting attorney when she starts serving as an associate justice on the Arkansas Court of Appeals. She said working trials and forming relationships are what she'll miss most about the post she is leaving.
"As the elected prosecutor, I tried class Y felonies and capital murder cases," she said. "Representing victims and their families allowed me to build a special relationship with those going through a very difficult, and emotional experience.
"I thoroughly enjoy trial work, but I will miss most of all the relationships that are formed through the process."
Stephanie added that while she will miss putting rapists and murderers behind bars, she looks forward to the perspective the new role is bound to provide.
"As lawyers, we are trained to argue the points most advantageous to our client and our client's interests. Throughout my career, I have had the experience of looking at cases from the plaintiff's standpoint, from the defendant's standpoint and from the prosecutor's standpoint. I am very excited to have the opportunity to step back and view the facts and law of the case in a neutral and detached manner, without advocating a side," she said. Her desire to sit on an appellate court came early.
"After I graduated law school, I went to clerk at the Court of Appeals for Judge Terry Crabtree. It was a wonderful experience and I learned a lot about the job, what it entails and the effect it has on the people of this state," Stephanie said. "I told Judge Crabtree over 20 years ago that one day I wanted to sit where he was sitting and be an appellate judge. He said to me, 'Then you need to get down in the trenches. You need to get in the courtroom and try cases so when you are sitting here, you know what it is like to be there.' And that is exactly what I did."
Barrett, a wife and mother of two, recognizes the difficulties facing a working mom. Now that her son and daughter are older, she anticipates her new role won't be as tough.
"Women lawyers who are also mothers face challenges that most men do not," she said. "There have been many late nights in the courtroom calling baby-sitters and family members to pick up my kids or watch them late."
And while she believes sexism in all workplaces is becoming less acceptable, Stephanie said it still exists.
"The younger generations experience less of it than older generations, but it has not disappeared. As a deputy prosecutor, I remember a man that told me his case was serious and involved a lot of money and he needed a man to handle it," she said. "Men often can get away with being more aggressive verbally or in negotiations and there is a generalization that he is doing a good job. However, when a women does the same thing it is frowned upon."
Stephanie said that women can be stern, fierce negotiators and feminine at the same time. n