As an employee of the Idaho State Bar (ISB) and Idaho Law Foundation (ILF), and editor of The Advocate, my colleague, Calle and I were excited to sit down with our new Deputy Director and introduce him to our members. So, on February 11^th, with our respective coffees in hand, we asked questions related to his background and what he’s looking forward to in his new role.

Q. Tell us a bit about who you are and your background.

A. I was born and raised in Idaho. I grew up in West Boise and did my undergraduate work at Boise State, studying political philosophy. I attended law school at the University of Utah, then came back to Boise State to do my master’s in public policy and administration. Since then, I’ve worked in all three branches of state government, most recently with the Idaho Supreme Court on the executive leadership team for their administrative office.

Q. What motivated you to work for the Bar and Foundation?

A. As a student of political philosophy, I spent a lot of time reading, writing, and thinking about the idea of justice. And with the Bar’s foundational statutory duty to aid in the science of jurisprudence and the improvement of the administration of justice,this—to me–is really of the most noble of causes to serve, and I’m honored to serve in this way.

Q. What issue or issues do you believe are most important to the public right now?

A. Meaningful access to affordable and effective legal representation is always important to the public, especially when people find themselves somehow ensnared in the system. And once they are in that system, I think people really care that their matters are resolved in accordance with the rule of law.

Q. What do you believe the Bar and Foundation are doing well?

A. One thing we do well is staying on the forefront of some of the national developments. For example, being a part of the first cohort of states administering the NextGen Bar Exam this year.

Q. Where could the Bar and Foundation use improvement?

A. I think there’s an opportunity for the Bar to continue to modernize, especially from a technological standpoint. I think improving how members and the public interface with the ISB through online portals and other computer systems really could increase our accessibility and transparency. Especially on the administrative side, there is an opportunity to harness key data to inform and support our efforts to improve the administration of justice.

Q. What’s something people may be surprised to know about the Bar or about what the Bar does?

A. Something that actually surprised me is the distinction between the Idaho State Bar and the Idaho Law Foundation. I think that, of course, there’s significant overlap between the organizations, but they do each have their own missions. So, although appreciation of this separation is largely academic, I think it’s important and still interesting just to navigate those distinctions and that separation.

Q. What are you passionate about outside of work?

A. Well, I like to work hard, but I like to play even harder. I snowboard, skateboard, and paddleboard. I love listening to music, mainly heavy metal, punk rock and old school hip hop. No country though; sorry, not sorry.

I played the drums in some bands, some heavy metal bands over the years. I love watching horror and sci-fi movies and reading classic literature. My partner, Aundria, and I have a 10-year-old Siberian husky named Katy. And she’s a handful but brings us a lot of joy and keeps us busy. We love taking her up into the beautiful Idaho mountains to stay active.

Q. What message do you want to convey to ISB members?

A. I did not go  to the University of Idaho (U of I), College of Law. I chose an out-of-state school. I think that having not gone to U of I, I just haven’t been as tapped in to the legal  community as much as I could have. And so I’m looking forward to getting to know everybody and working with them. As the three of us finished our conversation, I could see his excitement for the role and the new challenges ahead. Jared is available for any questions or feedback. His email is jhoskins@isb.idaho.gov