What book did you have the most fun reading in 2014?
Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson. The book is like a mysteriously flavorful tagine (a North African stew). It combines the social upheaval that drove the Arab Spring with a struggle for control of a breakthrough technology that could undermine or supercharge government surveillance. The secret spice is provided by the involvement of mystical creatures like genies. Alif, the protagonist, is a young hacktivist in a fictional Middle East country who helps protect political dissidents from government surveillance. After he is hacked by state security and forced into hiding, his world is turned upside down. Reality becomes blurred but the risks remain real.
It was a refreshingly original story. The moral and theological issues that the characters struggle with are easily recognizable but not always easily resolved. However, I’m reasonably certain that genies will not play a role in the decisions we need to make about the liberating and oppressive role of technology in our modern world.
How has your career surprised you?
My career has surprised me because I find myself working with lawyers and law firms for more than 25 years … and I love it! Never in my imagination could I have predicted it. In fact, my dad talked me out of law school (he was a lawyer) and I got an MBA instead. Upon graduation, I worked for real estate developers for a few years then, in 1988, the biggest law firm in my hometown decided it was time to hire its first marketing director. After two in-house gigs, I started TheRemsenGroup in 1997 and have never looked back.
What would you tell your son if he was thinking about going to law school?
I’d tell my son that the practice of law is changing rapidly, and he should talk to as many lawyers as he can because it is a big commitment. That said, law is one of the very few truly professional classes left out there with wide accessibility. There is tremendous responsibility and great opportunity in the practice of law. Lawyers make a huge difference in people’s lives on a regular basis and are the citizens best equipped to ensure the rights and freedoms of individuals are protected.
On a lighter note, I might tell him to think outside the box a little bit because between two of his uncles, his dad, and his grandfather all being lawyers, competition can be pretty fierce in the family. Medicine might be a better choice. Becoming a surgeon certainly has its perks as well; after all, you can always put the really difficult clients under general anesthetic.
What do you tell your students about life as a lawyer?
I give my classes a two-part “pep talk” at the end of each semester. First, I urge students to follow their interests as best they can. Finding an emotionally rewarding position in law may be difficult, time consuming, and even elusive. But the happiest, most fulfilled lawyers I know are ones whose callings continually rekindle the emotional flame.
A calling may be civil or criminal, public or private sector, or especially remunerative or not. The legal job market is tight, and lawyering remains hard work punctuated by rewards and challenges. But lawyers who follow their interests demonstrate the wisdom of Confucius’ adage: “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”
Second, I remind the students that they will soon be, as the Model Code of Professional Conduct puts it, “public citizens.” Consistent with their commitments to family and employment, lawyers should reserve time for public service to their communities, their state, or the nation. Service may summon their legal training, or it may summon other skills such as youth sports coaching, advancing United Way, or mentoring children in the public schools. But one way or the other, pro bono should be a lifelong calling for men and women whose accomplishments and hard work have earned them a place in our profession.
Aesop was right: “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.” So was Ralph Waldo Emerson: “No one can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.”
What has been your most memorable trip?
The most memorable trip I ever took was to the Winter Olympic Games. Actually the most memorable moments come from a combination of two trips.
My wife and I went to Lillehammer, Norway, in 1994 for our first Winter Games. The temperature rarely was above 10 degrees in the daytime and usually was below zero at night. The snow was like crystal sugar and the air so clear the sun was blinding. My wife wrote her name in script in the snow on a church lawn and seven days later it was still there. We saw Bonnie Blair win multiple gold medals and Dan Jansen recover from his fall and get a gold and a world record. Being at an international event as a proud American when the national anthem plays is a memorable moment.
In 2006 we took our four children to Torino, Italy, for their own Olympic experience. The alpine villages were amazing and local food everywhere was incredible. We saw Americans win gold in snowboarding and speed skating. After a tough loss to the Russians in hockey, we ended up talking with fans in the transit center, me in my American flag coat and Russians in red star jackets. Providing moments like that for my kids to be part of was a memorable experience.
When you are actually at the Olympics, you see the Olympic ideals in action without the distortion of media coverage. For me, this was the shared memorable moment of a trip to the Winter Games.
What was your path to becoming a lawyer?
I loved covering trials when I was a news reporter for the New York Daily News. My favorite parts were the closing arguments in a criminal case – when the prosecutor finished, I was ready to convict. When the defense rested, I had reasonable doubt.
After winning journalism awards for my legal reporting, I decided to get out of the spectator gallery and into the arena. I got my law degree at night and moved to Madison, ready to try lawsuits.
