20 Under 40 | KATE DUNCAN BUTLER
Photo by JOHN BURNS
As Associate Attorney with Barber Emerson, L.C., Kate’s practice covers many different areas, including litigation, appellate work, family law, real estate, and land-use. Kate is also a court-appointed defense attorney for juveniles and represents children and disabled adults in reduced-fee and pro bono guardianship cases to ensure individuals receive the necessary care and assistance they need in their daily lives.
Kate is active on several bar associations that include the Douglas County Bar Association and the Judge Hugh Means American Inn of Court. Kate is a member of the Kansas Bar Association Board of Editors, Diversity Committee, and represents the bar association on the Information Network Kansas Board. As Mock Trial Chair, Kate spearheaded the statewide high-school mock trial competition.
Kate serves as secretary of the Topeka Pride Board, is a governor-appointed member of Information Network Kansas, and is bylaws chair of the Potwin Place Association.
What led you to this career?
I started my professional life as a teacher at a credit-recovery high school in Arizona. Many of my students had left the more traditional high school setting because of personal and family struggles, including things like juvenile-offender charges or time spent in foster care. As their teacher, I tried to help them face these challenges in every way I could, writing letters to probation officers and lending a listening ear as they talked about being removed from—or reunited with—their families after foster care. These stories, and the resolve of my students, greatly influenced my decision to leave teaching for the law and to find a new way to help young people navigate those kinds of challenges.
What are your core values?
Loyalty, industriousness, and creativity. To me, loyalty is both doing right by the people you care about but also following through on your commitments. If I promise an organization that I'll be at a meeting or spearhead an effort, I am not going to back down until the work is done. A lot of times, that work is intense and time-consuming, which is why being industrious and hard-working is also so important to me. And because novel problems often require novel solutions, creativity is incredibly important.
What do you collect?
Coffee mugs! I have more than 60 coffee mugs in all kinds of colors and patterns. Some are souvenirs from vacations. Like the mug I recently bought after a tour of St. Louis Cemetery in New Orleans. Others commemorate my favorite musicals or feature superheroes, funny sayings, or cats. To me, each mug is a memory or a little piece of my personality, and I can never resist adding to my collection.
Click here to go to the full list of 2022 20 Under 40 Honorees.
