Lisa Rasmussen Hoing — speaker and managing partner at Goddard & Hoing, P.C. — has been in charge of the Declaration of Independence reading event for six years.
The criminal defense attorneys of Goddard & Hoing, P.C. will publicly read the Declaration of Independence on the Williamson County Courthouse steps at noon on Friday, July 3.
The reading will be paired with the presentation of colors by Georgetown ISD’s color guard, and a performance of the national anthem.
The event is part of a larger effort by the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association. Defense attorneys in every county across the state have read the Declaration of Independence at noon on the same day every year since 2010 to honor the country’s birthday.
The Williamson County event is open to the public, and all defense attorneys are invited to volunteer to read.
Lisa Rasmussen Hoing — speaker and managing partner at Goddard & Hoing, P.C. — has been in charge of the event for six years. She said she had never fully read the Declaration of Independence until she began organizing the activity, and found it “very interesting.”
As a litigator, Ms. Hoing said she considers herself a public speaker and feels comfortable reading at the courthouse. Each year since starting, she wears a tricorn hat and reads the section about “noble savages” — her favorite section of the declaration, she said.
“I’m very proud to be part of this,” she said. “That is definitely the overriding emotion. Every year, I’m very proud of our government and our Constitution.”
The connection between defense attorneys and the Declaration of Independence is a shared love for the protection of rights, Ms. Rasmussen Hoing said. She called the declaration an “incredible document” that “works really well.”
“It’s the job of the defense attorney to make the state do their job and protect the client’s individual and constitutional rights super important,” she said.
This year — in honor of the country’s 250th birthday — the firm is more actively advertising the reading and hopes for a larger turnout than usual. A co-sponsor — Round Rock Honey — has donated four-ounce jars of honey that will be passed out as a gift to guests while supplies last.