Tackling justice

It only took 18 years on the bench of the Minnesota Supreme Court for Alan Page to start getting more questions about his legal career than his football career.

“I’d say it’s 60-40,” Page said from his office in St. Paul. “I think there are a lot more people who haven’t known me as a football player, coupled with the fact that I’ve now been on the court three years longer than my professional football career.”

Page, a Pro Football Hall of Famer who played 11 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings as a right defensive tackle, will speak at the annual Justice for All luncheon June 15 in Kansas City. The event benefits Legal Aid of Western Missouri.

Page shifted to law while still playing professionally. He worked in private practice and as a Minnesota assistant attorney general before being elected to an open seat on the Minnesota Supreme Court in 1992.

Now in his last four-year term on the court (Minnesota, like Missouri, has a mandatory retirement age of 70), Page spends his time off the bench advocating for equal education for children.

Page declined to comment about the NFL lockout litigation that will have a hearing at the 8th U.S. Court of Appeals this week. But he did speak about juggling law school and pro football and how Perry Mason memories probably pushed him into the law.

Q • What topics might you hit during your speech in Kansas City on June 15?

I’ll talk about the importance of what legal aid attorneys do. The role they play is critical to ensuring equal justice. As things stand today, not everybody that comes into court is treated equally because not everybody has the same resources. Some cynics suggest people are entitled to the justice they can afford. That’s simply not right.

Q • You attended law school at the University of Minnesota while still playing for the Vikings. How did you manage that?

For me, more than anything it was a time-management problem. People go to law school and work all the time. I’m in that small group of people who actually enjoyed law school. For the first time in a number of years, it gave me the opportunity to use my head for something other than a place to keep a helmet or as a battering ram. I found it very stimulating.

Q • Was there ever a time when you felt torn between football and law school?

It wasn’t unusual to play a road game on Monday night and have a final exam on Tuesday morning. That was part of the territory. You just managed your time in a way that allows you to prepare for both and do the both at the highest level you could.

Q • What do you most appreciate about your football career?

Primarily the people. But playing football, it was simply a game. And it’s game that I enjoyed. But it is nothing more than a game for the players and entertainment for those who watch.

Q • Why did you have an interest in becoming a lawyer?

Truth be told, it was probably too much “Perry Mason” as a young child, coupled with reading about Brown vs. Board of Education as a 9-year-old. Long before I was interested in football, I had an interest with the law. But as a 9-year-old, I didn’t know any lawyers, I didn’t know how you became a lawyer. I didn’t really know what lawyers did. Over time, you learn about those things.

Q • How do you view your role as a Minnesota Supreme Court justice?

My approach to the law is to try to understand it and articulate it in a way that is helpful to others. I don’t come to the court with any agenda other than that. Our role is to ensure that the people who come in front of us are treated fairly, and that they have their cases heard by judges who are impartial and not there to impose their own will.

I want anyone who picks up one of my opinions, whether intentionally or by accident, to read it, understand the issue and facts, and understand the decision we made and the reasoning behind it. And I don’t want them to have to struggle to do so.  Obviously others will decide whether I’ve been successful or not, but that’s my goal.

Q • Why do you have such an interest in equal education for children?

Growing up in Canton, Ohio, I saw football players who, for whatever reason, struggled academically. I didn’t understand that. If you put as much time and energy into learning as you do practicing and playing football, you should be able to learn to the same degree. It became clear to me that the problem is really an academic one, not an athletic one.

As a football player, I’d get put on a pedestal and be asked to talk to young kids about football and education. Having spent an unquantifiable number of hours in schools, it seems to me that’s an area where I can bring about change in how young people see education and how they can use it as a tool to overcome many of the problems people face. Whether it’s poverty, crime, or discrimination based on race or gender, education is the tool that can help you overcome all of that.

If we can help children understand that, it puts them in charge and gives them control of their lives, and allows them to achieve their hopes and dreams.

Q • You’re an avid runner and are famous for being one of the first active NFL players to complete a marathon. Are you still running?

Ever so slowly, I’m still running. We live about three blocks from the Lake of Isles [in Minneapolis], so every morning, whether I want to or not, I’m out there on Lake of the Isles. I don’t run as far or as fast, but I’m still out there.