A seasoned attorney who spent 10 years commuting between Walworth County and the city of Oconto has been selected as Oconto County’s corporation counsel.
Cheryl Mick put down permanent stakes in Oconto on April 1, after commuting between Walworth County where she ran a private practice, and Oconto, where her husband runs a business, Hi Seas Marina, which the couple purchased in 2002.
“We love it up here,” Mick said. “I’m glad we made the move.”
The County Board on Thursday approved the employment of Mick on a contractual basis, for $125 per hour, for an average of 20 hours a week. She replaces Robert Mraz, who left the half-time position when the county was awarded state funding for a full-time assistant district attorney. Mraz worked both half-time positions for 32 years.
Oconto County Administrative Coordinator Kevin Hamann said the county is grateful for the additional funding — $77,800 for the ADA position. The county has requested full-time funding for over 20 years.
Yet Mraz’s departure left a void.
“We had to scramble around to find a new attorney,” Hamann said.
Mick started July 15 and represented the county at three child protective services hearings on her first day, then was back in court at 8:30 a.m. July 16 for an emergency hearing.
Mick called her first week a “baptism of fire,” but said she feels comfortable with the position, although there’s one major change. Instead of representing the families in these cases, she’s on the opposite side of the courtroom, representing the county’s interests.
Along with an extensive background in family practice, Mick has municipal experience gained by representing the village of East Troy and the town of Burlington in the 1990s. Among her duties were prosecuting ordinance violations and dealing with issues involving employment, property taxes and zoning.
She helped Burlington create its municipal court and was appointed its first judge, serving until the next election. She was ineligible for the office because she was not a town resident. Mick also served as guardian ad litem, employed by Kenosha County for individuals living in the neighboring Walworth County.
Hamann said county officials spoke to several attorneys before offering the position to Mick.
“I’m happy to have Cheryl here. She has a lot of experience in Human Services and child support, and she also has some municipal experience,” Hamann said.
Although the position averages 20 hours a week, this may be expanded, depending on need.
“We’ll be talking during budget time about making that position full time,” Hamann said.
Mick, an Illinois native, earned her bachelor’s degree from Rockford College in Rockford, Ill., and her law degree from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. She has been practicing law in Wisconsin since 1987, and opened her own practice in Walworth County in 1989.
She closed the office in December, spent the winter months in Florida with her husband, John, then returned to Oconto, where she runs her private practice from the marina. The couple has a long association with boating, including racing a J/24 sailboat for 24 years.
“Our whole life has been wrapped up in boating,” Mick said.
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