By Elijah T. Gaglio
Aguirre & Severson LLP
Former San Diego City Attorney Michael J. Aguirre has practiced law in San Diego for over forty years. He graduated from high school in Yuma, Arizona, and earned a Bachelor of Science from Arizona State University in 1971. One of his first jobs was picking cantaloupes on the farm fields in Yuma. In the early morning, Aguirre and other workers could pick enough cantaloupes to make minimum wage (approximately $1.25/hour at the time). However, when the workers returned in the afternoon, Aguirre recalls, “You could not find a cantaloupe with a telescope.” There were certainly not enough cantaloupes for the workers to make minimum wage. Mr. Aguirre attributes his support for strong worker unions to his past experience of not having a strong union to protect himself and other farm workers against exploitative practices.
After graduating from UC Berkley School of Law in 1974, Mr. Aguirre began his career in the public sector. Aguirre was an avid reader and remembers being heavily influenced by Robert Kennedy, an aggressive prosecutor of organized crime and labor racketeering. Kennedy’s work fueled Aguirre’s passion to prosecute organized crime and labor racketeering. Aguirre was provided an opportunity to do just that as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in San Diego. He successfully directed a year-long grand jury investigation into pension racketeering, saving hundreds of San Diegans’ pensions. Thereafter, he was appointed to the U.S. Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, through which he tackled national labor issues and successfully investigated a national labor scheme defrauding workers of millions of dollars.
During law school, Mr. Aguirre had the honor to meet workers’ rights activist Cesar Chavez with a group of college student leaders who boycotted Gallo Wines. Aguirre remembers seeing Cesar Chavez in action and how selfless, ambitious, and dedicated he was to increasing farm workers’ standard of living.
In 1993, Aguirre was asked to assist Cesar Chavez in defending the United Farm Workers (UFW) union in a trial brought by large lettuce grower Bruce Church, which was seeking damages arising from the UFW’s boycott of its lettuce in the 1980’s. In the same area where he once picked cantaloupes, Aguirre was now returning to defend farm workers. Aguirre temporarily relocated his office and secured an all-night key to the local law library where he worked with a team of lawyers to litigate the case. Aguirre took over the defense after Cesar Chavez’s death mid-trial following two days of trial testimony. With the help of appellate attorney Paul Ulrich, they secured a $3.7 million judgment against the grower.
Advice for New Attorneys
According to Aguirre, smaller and larger cases are really not that different. However, he encourages new attorneys to challenge themselves to take on complicated matters requiring a combination of research skills, legal knowledge, oral advocacy, and an understanding of the judicial system. Especially when facing talented opposing counsel, an attorney must be prepared and must do the work needed to be successful. Complex cases help attorneys expand their skills and provide an in-depth understanding of how litigation works.
Public and Private Sector Practice
Aguirre encourages all attorneys to avail themselves to public service through a public agency, such as a district attorney’s or public defender’s office, or through volunteer opportunities. Conversely, he believes that public attorneys should at some point try private practice because it makes for a better and well-rounded attorney, as private practice allows attorneys to develop skills in a highly competitive environment.
Aguirre cites to former Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, who once said: “The most important political office is that of the private citizen.” Aguirre emphasizes that elected officials should remain accountable to the citizenry and that private citizens have the ability to challenge injustices and create a huge impact.
Commitment to Justice and Advocacy
Mr. Aguirre currently runs a private law firm with his law partner Maria C. Severson. Notably, the firm worked tirelessly to obtain a settlement for the failed San Onofre nuclear power plant that won ratepayers approximately $775 million. Aguirre says his fortitude is inspired by historical rebellions against injustice, such as Abraham Lincoln standing strong in the face of opposition when abolishing slavery or civil rights attorneys overcoming overwhelming obstacles to outlaw segregation and Jim Crow laws.
He advises that new attorneys should embrace the “heavy lifting” required in cases that pursue justice, with the understanding that legal cases are a marathon and not a sprint. Ultimately, he says, attorneys have a duty to advocate for changes in existing laws that perpetuate major injustices.
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