Leadership Unplugged: Lessons on Service & Success in New Hampshire
Join us on January 28 for an engaging and unfiltered conversation with two of New Hampshire’s most respected public servants as they share what decades of service have taught them about influence, connection, and making a difference in the Granite State.
Hosted by Leadership New Hampshire in partnership with the Warren B. Rudman Center for Justice, Leadership & Public Service, Leadership Unplugged brings together two Leadership New Hampshire alumni from different political backgrounds who have helped shape civic life for decades: recently retired Congresswoman Ann McLane Kuster and recently retired New Hampshire Supreme Court Justice James Bassett. Professor Lucy Hodder, Director of Health and Life Sciences Law, will moderate the discussion.
Close friends for more than fifty years, Congresswoman Kuster and Justice Bassett will speak candidly about their paths to the United States Congress and the New Hampshire Supreme Court, and the personal and professional relationships that supported them along the way. Their conversation will explore the culture of accessibility that sets New Hampshire apart, the opportunities that come from showing up, and the ways strong connections can shape a career and a community.
Attendees will gain practical, hard-earned lessons from two leaders who have built meaningful lives of service in the state and who remain deeply committed to encouraging others to engage, contribute, and lead.
The evening will feature a moderated conversation, audience Q&A, and a networking reception. Free and open to the public.
When: January 28, reception from 5 – 6 p.m., followed by discussion at 6 p.m. Closing remarks at 7 p.m.
Where: UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law, Room 282.
Registration is required. Please register here by Jan. 27.
Justice James Bassett
Justice James Bassett
Justice Basset returned to Orr & Reno, as counsel, after serving 13 years as the 107th Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court. He brings an exceptional level of expertise to his new role, where he focuses primarily on alternative dispute resolution cases — as a mediator and arbitrator — in corporate, government, land use, and other disputes, as well as in appellate litigation matters in state and federal courts.
Prior to his appointment to the New Hampshire Supreme Court in 2012, Justice Barrett worked for 27 years as a highly successful trial and appellate attorney at Orr & Reno, concentrating his practice on constitutional law, commercial litigation, medical malpractice defense, First Amendment and Right-to-Know issues, and land use matters. In his active appellate practice, he argued many cases before the New Hampshire Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.
During his tenure on the New Hampshire Supreme Court, Justice Bassett served as chair of the Commission on Judicial Branch Workplace Environment, co-chair of the Court’s Committee of the Judiciary and the Media, and co-chair of the Access to Justice Commission. He also served as the Court’s representative on the New Hampshire Judicial Council, and the Court’s liaison to the NH Bar Foundation and NH Bar Association. He was also instrumental in expanding the court’s internship program to include college undergraduates.
In 2016, Justice Bassett was appointed by Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts to serve as a member of the Advisory Committee on Evidence Rules — based at the Federal Judicial Center — the national policy-making body for the federal courts. He was reappointed in 2019 and served until 2022.
With his extensive experience on both sides of the bench, he brings an unprecedented degree of knowledge and tactical skill to his work with his clients today.
In his free time, Jim enjoys skiing, biking, hiking in the White Mountains, visiting with his three grown children and one grandchild, and travelling the world with his wife.
Congresswoman Ann McClane Kuster
Congresswoman Ann McLane Kuster
Annie McLane Kuster is an experienced attorney, public policy advocate, and former Member of Congress, serving New Hampshire’s Second District for six terms from 2013 - 2025.
During her tenure in the House of Representatives, Kuster established herself as a results-oriented, pragmatic lawmaker with a record of working across the aisle to get things done. This reputation earned her the support of her colleagues in 2022 when she was elected to serve as Chair of the New Democrat Coalition, the largest ideological caucus in Congress.
As Chair, she led a 100-member Coalition of moderate House Democrats through the tumultuous 118th Congress, playing a leading role in negotiations with Republicans and Biden Administration officials through the historic expulsion of the Speaker, the debt-ceiling crisis, and multiple government shutdown threats. She also worked alongside House Democratic leadership to secure votes for the National Defense Authorization Act and led bipartisan discussions on immigration reform, clean energy expansion, and AI policy.
While in Congress, Kuster served on the influential Energy & Commerce Committee, House Committee on Agriculture, and House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. Additionally, Kuster was nominated to represent her colleagues on the prominent Democratic Steering & Policy Committee and was selected by Speaker Pelosi to serve on the Farm Bill conference committee.
Throughout her career in the House, Kuster regularly worked across the aisle and built long-lasting partnerships with pragmatic Republicans to tackle challenging issues.
In 2015, after witnessing firsthand the devastating impact of the substance use crisis in her home state, Kuster co-founded the Bipartisan Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Task Force to combat the epidemic, driving progress in Congress and securing critical bipartisan wins.
Kuster also led efforts to advocate for survivors of sexual assault. A survivor herself, Kuster joined with Republicans and Democrats to establish the Bipartisan Task Force to End Sexual Violence to ensure survivors have a voice in Washington, D.C.
Kuster graduated from Dartmouth College as part of the College’s third class to include women, and she earned her law degree from Georgetown University Law Center. She lives with her husband Brad, an environmental lawyer, near Hopkinton, New Hampshire, where they raised their two sons, Zach and Travis.
Professor Lucy Hodder
Professor Lucy Hodder
Professor Lucy Hodder directs the Health and Life Sciences Law and Policy programs at UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law and is a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Law. Prof. Hodder is an experienced New Hampshire healthcare and regulatory attorney in practice for over 30 years. She founded the Health Law and Policy programs at the University of New Hampshire Institute for Health Policy and Practice (IHPP) and at the law school. Lucy teaches and supports a variety of health and life sciences law courses, including current Issues in Health Law and Policy and Health Law and Industry Regulation. She also serves as an adjunct with the UNH Institute for IHPP and focuses her research and publications on healthcare systems reform, coverage and payment strategies in healthcare and life sciences, Medicaid policy, health data interoperability and privacy.
Prof. Hodder previously served as Legal Counsel and Senior Health Policy Advisor to New Hampshire Governor Maggie Hassan. For many years, she practiced as a shareholder of Rath, Young and Pignatelli, P.C., and Chair of the firm’s Health Law Group assisting providers and businesses to navigate the changing healthcare environment. She served as an Assistant Attorney General in the New Hampshire Department of Justice from 1993-1998 and began her practice in the San Francisco offices of Brobeck, Phleger and Harrison, LLP after clerking for Judge Martin L.C. Feldman, United States District Court, Louisiana.
Prof. Hodder was recognized as one of the Granite State’s 200 most influential business leaders in 2021 and 2022, awarded the Outstanding Service in Public Sector Law by the NH Bar Association in January 2021, and named Lawyer of the Year in 2012 for Health Care Law by her peers.
