CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Casper attorney John A. Masterson was recently a recipient of the Wyoming State Bar’s fifth annual John M. Burman Extraordinary Service Award. The award was presented during an awards luncheon at the Wyoming State Bar’s Annual Meeting & Judicial Conference hosted in Laramie last week.
The award was presented to Masterson by Jackson lawyer and Wyoming State Bar President, Christopher Hawks, who recognized his many years of exemplary service to the Bar and his clients.
Masterson graduated from the University of Wyoming College of Law and began his legal career working for the County and District Courts in Natrona County. He later transitioned into private practice and then became an Assistant District Attorney. Masterson moved on to become a lawyer in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Wyoming.
In 2003, then-Governor David Freudenthal appointed him to serve as legal counsel and federal/state relations coordinator with the Governor’s Office. In his final months of service to the state, Masterson served as the deputy director of Wyoming’s Office of State Lands and Investments. He participated directly in policy making, oversight and administration of over 3.5 million acres of state surface lands and 4.2 million acres of minerals.
Masterson has been a longtime supporter of the Wyoming State Bar, serving on the Board of Law Examiners, the Board of Professional Responsibility, the Board of Officers and Commissioners, the Civil Pattern Jury Instructions Committee, the Legislative Developments Committee, the Editorial Committee for the Wyoming Lawyer and the Wyoming Lawyer Assistance Program Advisory Committee. He is also a past president of the Wyoming State Bar.
“John’s service to Wyoming extends beyond law as well, as John is a tireless supporter of Casper and Wyoming through many organizations, including the Library Foundation, the Troopers Board of Directors and the Drum Corps International Board of Directors,” said Ken Barbe, an attorney from Casper who nominated Masterson for the award.
Criteria for the award are extensive. Recipients must demonstrate a history of extraordinary service to Wyoming lawyers, the Wyoming State Bar, the University of Wyoming College of Law, the Wyoming judiciary, the citizens of Wyoming and the international community.
John M. Burman, the award’s namesake who died in February 2019, was an expert in the field of legal and judicial ethics, codes of conduct for lawyers and judges and professional responsibility. He was also a prolific writer in those areas of the law, as well as in the law of children and families, the child welfare system and the juvenile justice system.
