New Clerk of Court to Begin Term Next Year
Longtime Clerk of Court Peg Allison will pass the torch to Sara Smith, who has worked in the office for the past 14 years
By Maggie Dresser
Flathead County will have a new Clerk of Court starting next month after voters elected office administrator Sara Smith.
Longtime Clerk of Court Peg Allison, who is retiring after 32 years, will pass the torch to Smith in January to oversee the office that handles a range of administrative proceedings such as district court documentation, marriage licenses, jury selection and passports in the Flathead County Justice Center in downtown Kalispell.
Originally from the Flathead Valley, Smith has been working as the department’s office administrator for the past four years and served as a deputy clerk for the prior 10 years. She’s worked with every district court judge, and she remains driven by the fast-paced environment.
“Things are never the same — even after being here for 14 years, new things still come up and you really have to use your best judgment and past experiences to solve issues,” Smith said. “I like figuring stuff out and I don’t like sitting at a desk all day long doing the same thing, and that’s partially why I loved being in the courtroom with the judges, too — it was face-paced.”
In addition to working with each district court judge over the years, Smith also works closely with a variety of agencies and departments, including the county attorney’s office, the Department of Corrections and the Office of the Public Defender.
“They are all great to work with and I love working with all of the other county departments,” Smith said.
Smith says that once she begins her new role as clerk of court in January, one of her main priorities will be to bring the department to a full staff. Of the 14 positions, only 10 are currently filled.
“It’s really hard on staff because since we have five judges, we sometimes have five people out of the office in the courtroom and two people at the customer service window,” Smith said. “It doesn’t leave very many people in the office so I’m looking forward to working on that.”
During Allison’s time in leadership, Smith’s predecessor focused on technological advancements like the implementation of new software programs to bring more efficiency to the office.
Smith plans to continue implementing technology that improves productivity to the office along with training and customer service skills.
“I learned a ton from Peg,” Smith said. “She runs a very efficient office. I don’t think I’ve ever worked anywhere that runs this smoothly. She has set up a process and double-checks for every single thing we do and one of her biggest things is cross training to make sure everybody in the office can do any job. That’s been huge.”
“I’m really excited for the change and the challenge that the job is going to bring,” Smith added.