What inspired you to join Bernstein?
In many areas of legal practice, the interaction between client and lawyer is transactional. With estate planning, however, it is only when we build a relationship of trust with each client that they can feel comfortable revealing the details of their family situation, which allows us to provide them with the right tools and guidance to help them accomplish their objectives. In private practice I would sometimes ask clients to share with me everything they wanted me to know and then everything they didn’t want me to know. While sometimes the comment would provoke a laugh, it drives home the point that estate planning attorneys can only truly counsel clients when they understand the entire picture.
Bernstein drew me in because it was obvious that the firm’s leadership is committed to growing and maintaining a team of professionals whose primary focus is to help develop deeper client relationships and provide the level of guidance I was used to providing in private practice.
How have your values and personal background uniquely positioned you to work with your clients?
Around my eighth birthday, my mother went into the hospital and developed complications during surgery that she continues to deal with to this day. As a result, we went from living a comfortable life to a daily struggle for survival. My mother went from a successful small business owner to being unable to work. My father went from a stay-at-home dad to having to work multiple jobs to make ends meet and provide proper care for my mother. Despite these challenges, my mother has never quit fighting to get better and my father has worked continuously to ensure that my brother and I were able to get through college. Our circumstances changed our world overnight, but they also instilled in me a set of values that now shape my approach to my work.
Having faced adversity in this way, I have a strong appreciation for the hard work and struggles that clients endure to build their wealth. More importantly, I understand that what they have built through their hard work can very easily be taken away by a change in circumstances. It is this mindset that drives me to find the right planning solutions for each client to ensure that they are protected from unintended circumstances and that their legacy is passed on effectively.
Which personal accomplishment makes you proudest?
One of my proudest personal accomplishments is actually not my accomplishment to claim. While in law school, I had the honor of participating in several moot court, mock trial and negotiation competitions. Upon graduation, I was asked to coach the next group of negotiation students. I continued to coach the team for 11 years. Each year we would choose new students, coach them on how to negotiate in a fictional situation and then compete against others law students from around the country. For years we had moderate success at the regional level. A couple of times we were chosen to attend the national competition, but we were never able to make the finals. I sometimes questioned whether my coaching was the right approach for the students and this particular competition. However, everything changed in 2022 when two of our students, assisted by two others, were victorious over 128 other law schools to take home the national championship. While the victory and the trophies were fun to celebrate, watching my four students accomplish something that no other law school in the state of Georgia had ever achieved was life-changing for me personally. It is a moment that will remain with me for the rest of my life.