Keeping-Tabs-Winter-2023

ness from the opposing side, greatly help to de-escalate the emotion.
Finally, family law files are not just about one incident or one transaction: they involve all aspects
of a family’s life and are ever-evolving as children age, market conditions vary, etc. This
makes family law interesting, but it also requires an immense amount of organization and planning
to ensure that advocacy strategies are constantly being reassessed and updated.
Q. What can young advocates do to help improve access to justice?
A. I believe it is important for young advocates to devote even a small amount of their time towards
access to justice initiatives – whether that is pro bono work, or “low-bono” work, volunteering at legal
clinics, etc. I, myself, volunteer with the Family Justice Center and Luke’s Place, and that experience
has highlighted how much of a need there is for these programs. Even a few hours a month can have
a profound impact.
Q. What role has mentorship played in your career?
A. I have been incredibly fortunate to have worked under, and been mentored by, some of the
best practitioners in this area, who were willing to devote the time to helping me grow professionally
and personally including Alfred Mamo, Harold Niman, Philip Epstein, Ken Cole and many
others. I have also found mentorship through opposing counsel on certain files. Patrick Schmidt
was one of these mentors and I had the great fortune of being challenged by him and being able
to learn from him on files. I am extremely humbled to be the inaugural recipient of the “Patrick D.
Schmidt Future of Family Law Award” and I view it as a responsibility to practice law in a manner
that carry on even a small part of the tremendous contributions Pat made to our profession.
Q. What advocacy tips do you have for young advocates?
A. The difference between a good lawyer and a great lawyer is preparation and practice. Hard
work pays off, and your knowledge will be your greatest source of confidence and persuasion.
You need to be confident in your advocacy before you can gain other people’s confidence in you.
Q. What do you feel are the most important traits of a good mentor to a young advocate?
A. I think there are two important traits: First, mentors should go beyond helping their mentees succeed.
They should also encourage their mentees to pay it forward by helping to develop the next generation
of young advocates to ensure the profession continues to flourish long-term.
Second, experience and knowledge of not only substantive law, but also legal processes and advocacy
techniques. This is important because practicing law requires not just ability to quickly assess
challenges and to develop and adapt strategies to address them.
Q. What have been some memorable high and low points of your career? What learnings
did you take from these experiences and how have they led you to this milestone?
A. My most memorable high point was reading the decision following my first contested motion, where
a controlling husband was attempting to use the justice system to continue his control. The decision
had a profound impact on the wife and the children and was my first experience with how rewarding
this job can be.
The most memorable low point happened early in my practice. I returned from my honeymoon to an
arbitration that was not properly prepared. The stress of feeling unprepared was significant, as was the
intensity of preparing an entire arbitration in a short time period. This experience, however, made me
acutely aware of the need to be prepared; to prepare early and to prepare more than might be necessary.
This is a lesson I have not forgotten and has served me well.
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