Samuel alba: creating change and solving problems.

• Author: Stewart, Heather

Samuel Alba's legal career has always revolved around the courtroom. In fact, he chose his first job after law school based on how soon he would be able to appear in court.

"I had an offer from one of the large law firms in Phoenix at the time, and I asked the question, 'How long would it be before I can appear in court with clients?' and they told me that it would be five or six years. I went and spoke with the federal public defender, and he said two or three months. And that, really, is what I wanted to do. I wanted to get into trials, in court, and I felt the public defender's office afforded me a better opportunity to do that," says Alba.

Alba worked for the Federal Public Defenders office in Arizona for five years, and he says, "What I learned as a public defender still serves me daily" Later, he spent seven years at the United States Attorney's Office in Utah, where he prosecuted an array of criminal cases. After that, he joined Prince, Yeates & Geldzahler and worked on civil cases, as well as white-collar criminal defense.

For Alba, the allure ot the legal protession was always about creating change and solving problems. He explains that law school "taught a different way of thinking and a different way of addressing problems. And I saw that as a good way to try and resolve problems for individuals and for corporations."

In 1992, he took on a new role in the courtroom--he became a United States Magistrate Judge. This position drew on his wealth of experience in private practice, as a public defender and as a prosecutor.

"There were a lot of...