if they are elected, that will keep them lo- cal, and I think that is important. I hope in the future, the probate court remains that way. Clearly, things are getting better in terms of access to justice through the In- ternet. When I first became probate judge, the probate court itself had no computers, no word processors, and no Internet. The ability to find out how to do a probate case using modern technology didn’t exist. A quick story about that … when the judicia- ry formed a website, the probate court was one of the first entities to put our forms and put our processes online. We didn’t do that with a consultant; it didn’t cost any money. It was Joe Lenahan of the court administra- tor’s office who put online the information that people needed in order to process a probate court case, the pamphlets and all of that. His probate website won a national award, and it was sort of a leading edge on how people could find out how do to a pro- bate case. So, certainly, in the future there is going to be continued improvement in the ability of people to deal with the courts online.
BP: So, I want to ask you about your
staff. I know that you inherited the staff of two people that were there for a very long time. GB: Right.
BP: They were probably the state ex-
perts on how probate court operates, and in the last, what, four years, you’ve had to replace them. You brought in two new peo- ple?
GB: Yes.
BP: How important are those positions, not only in Washington County, but in the local probate courts? GB: They are essential. The two people that were register and clerk when I arrived were two sisters, Donna Murray and Lor- na Gaboriault. They had seen it all, so to speak. The clerks in the court system are the face of the court system. We call it “at the window,” and being “at the window” and dealing with the public, collecting the fees that people often resent having to pay, explaining to people the processes, telling people what they have to do (often when they don’t want to be at the court to begin with) … Being at the window is a very taxing job and it requires a lot of skill. Invariably, the staff with whom I have been fortunate enough to work has been very skilled at that. They help people along; they deal with aggravated people and peo- ple who are rude and not very nice. They deal with them professionally and directly and get the work done. The current regis- ter is Janice Brown. She worked in Califor- nia for a while and is a trained paralegal.
BP: There is a lot going on in probate systems around the country. In some states there’s very little or no judicial involvement in estate matters, pretty much, though ob- viously not in termination or adoption cas- es. What do you think the trend is, or may be, in Vermont about how estate cases are going to be handled in the future? Do you see substantial change to the way the pro- bate court operates now, at least in that part of its jurisdiction? Or do you think things are going to be pretty much as they are?
GB: Well, the function of probate is to change title of the property that is owned by the decedent, to adjust the debts of the decedent, and to provide a systemic way for estates to be handled, as opposed to folks backing up a van to somebody’s house and walking off with the proper- ty. We used to rely on the law that creat- ed “heirs deeds.” That law was that once a person died, their real estate descended without probate decree to their relatives according to the law of intestacy unless a will interceded to change that. Well, as we know today, sorting out a title, trying to fig-
She is excellent, both in administering the court work and in dealing with folks. Cora Walbridge is the clerk of the court and she is excellent as well. I have been very fortu- nate to have great staff.
www.vtbar.org
THE VERMONT BAR JOURNAL • FALL 2012
33
Interview with Judge George Belcher
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