Sharon Lea Soorholtz Greer is an American lawyer and Iowa Court of Appeals judge. After more than three decades as a trial attorney in Marshalltown, she was appointed to the appellate court in April 2019. Her career has combined civil litigation, legal writing, professional leadership, judicial service, and work on Iowa justice initiatives.
Background
Sharon Lea Soorholtz Greer was born on December 3, 1955, in Marshalltown, Iowa, and grew up on her family's farm in Marshall County. Her rural Iowa background remained connected to the legal and civic institutions of Marshalltown, where she later practiced law and began her judicial career.
Her grandfather was a farmer who had been prevented by the Great Depression from pursuing his own ambition to become a lawyer. That family history contributed to Greer's decision to study law after initially considering doctoral work in psychology.
Education
Greer earned dual undergraduate degrees in psychology and child development from Iowa State University in 1978, graduating with distinction. Iowa State, founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, had developed into a major land-grant university whose programs combined scientific education with practical service to Iowa.
She received her Juris Doctor from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1982. The law school, established in 1865, is Iowa's oldest law school and has long combined legal scholarship, professional training, and preparation for public service. While studying there, Greer served on the Iowa Law Review and worked as a research assistant to insurance-law scholar Alan Widiss.
Career
Greer was admitted to the Iowa bar in 1982 and developed a litigation practice in Marshalltown. She practiced with Cartwright, Druker & Ryden, a Marshalltown law firm, becoming a partner and working in insurance defense, civil litigation, personal-injury, business, family, and juvenile matters. Her practice reflected the broad range of legal work common in smaller Iowa communities, while her professional writing included analysis of Iowa's livestock warranty law and continuing legal-education issues.
She served on the Supreme Court Commission on Continuing Legal Education from 1986 to 1995 and chaired it from 1990 to 1995. She also served on the District 2-B Judicial Nominating Commission beginning in 1991. Her professional leadership included service as president of the Iowa Defense Counsel Association from 2004 to 2005 and president of the American Board of Trial Advocates in 2008.
In April 2019, Governor Kim Reynolds appointed Greer to the Iowa Court of Appeals. The court reviews civil and criminal appeals, post-conviction proceedings, and other cases transferred by the Iowa Supreme Court; its decisions are final unless the supreme court grants further review. As an appellate judge, Greer has emphasized writing opinions that explain the reasoning of decisions in language understandable to litigants.
Her judicial service has included co-chairing the Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure Task Force and the Iowa Children's Justice Advisory Committee, previously co-chairing the Iowa Rules of Evidence Task Force, and serving on the Iowa State Bar Association Jury Instruction Committee and the Iowa Adult Criminal Drug Treatment Court Standards Revision Committee. She has also participated in work groups concerning child representation and court data, and served on the Iowa Governor's Drug Policy Advisory Council.
Achievements
Greer built a more than three-decade career as a trial attorney in Marshalltown before joining the Iowa Court of Appeals in 2019.
She provided leadership in Iowa legal administration through service on continuing-legal-education, judicial-nominating, civil-procedure, evidence, jury-instruction, children's-justice, and treatment-court committees.
Her published legal analysis of Iowa livestock warranty exemptions was later cited in Iowa Supreme Court discussion of the state's livestock-sale warranty statute.
(A law review note examining Iowa's statutory exemption fr...)
1981
Views
Greer's public statements emphasize legal service, accessibility, and the responsibility of courts to explain their reasoning clearly. Her judicial and professional activities reflect a view of legal practice as both an advocacy profession and a form of community service.
Membership
Greer has belonged to professional and legal organizations connected with trial advocacy, Iowa's bar, judicial administration, and continuing legal education. Her memberships include the Marshall County Bar Association, the Iowa State Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the Iowa Defense Counsel Association, the American Board of Trial Advocates, the Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers, the Iowa Judges Association, and the American College of Trial Attorneys.
Her association work has included leadership in the organized defense bar, service on continuing-legal-education and judicial-nominating bodies, and participation in committees concerned with jury instructions, evidence, civil procedure, children's justice, and treatment-court standards.
Phi Delta Phi
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United States
Chaired the commission from 1990 to 1995.
Supreme Court Commission on Continuing Legal Education
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United States
1986 - 1995
District 2-B Judicial Nominating Commission
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United States
1991
Marshall County Bar Association
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United States
Iowa State Bar Association
,
United States
American Bar Association
,
United States
Served as president from 2004 to 2005.
Iowa Defense Counsel Association
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United States
Fellow.
American College of Trial Attorneys
,
United States
Served as president in 2008.
American Board of Trial Advocates
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United States
Fellow.
Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers
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United States
Iowa Judges Association
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United States
Co-chair.
Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure Task Force
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United States
Previously co-chaired the task force.
Iowa Rules of Evidence Task Force
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United States
Iowa State Bar Association Jury Instruction Committee
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United States
Co-chair.
Iowa Children's Justice Advisory Committee
,
United States
Iowa Adult Criminal Drug Treatment Court Standards Revision Committee
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United States
Iowa Governor's Drug Policy Advisory Council
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United States
Personality
Greer has described herself as valuing relationships, service, and an approachable judicial style. In accounts of her legal career, she has been characterized as quick-witted and willing to respond to awkward situations with humor rather than anger.
Quotes from others about the person
University of Iowa Law Review leaders recognized Greer for a distinguished career, lifelong dedication to Iowa Law, assistance to others, and service to the community. She has said that she values writing judicial opinions in a way that allows litigants to understand the reasoning behind the court's decisions.
Connections
Greer is married to Joel Greer, with whom she practiced law for many years. They have two daughters and three granddaughters. During her legal career, she and her husband generally maintained separate trial practices rather than trying cases together.
In Re Marriage of Pundt
An Iowa Court of Appeals decision identifying Sharon Soorholtz Greer as counsel for the appellee while she practiced with Cartwright, Druker & Ryden.
Iowa Law Review Alumni Achievement Award,
United States
Presented by the Iowa Law Review board in 2022 in recognition of Greer's legal career, service to the University of Iowa College of Law, and continuing support for the law school community.
Presented by the Iowa Law Review board in 2022 in recognition of Greer's legal career, service to the University of Iowa College of Law, and continuing support for the law school community.
Fred H. Sievert Award,
United States
Awarded by the Defense Research Institute in 2005 for outstanding leadership in the organized defense bar.
Awarded by the Defense Research Institute in 2005 for outstanding leadership in the organized defense bar.
Iowa Supreme Court Voice of Justice Award,
United States
Recognized Greer's support of justice in Iowa; she was selected from nominees submitted by the Iowa Supreme Court justices.
Recognized Greer's support of justice in Iowa; she was selected from nominees submitted by the Iowa Supreme Court justices.
