The Young Texas Lawyer

Four months ago, Afif Ghannoum, a 29-year-old attorney launched The Ghannoum Law Firm. The firm focuses almost exclusively on transactions and intellectual property for the biotechnology industry. What sets them apart is the way the firm started. Ghannoum used Craigslist to help launch his firm by advertising for potential partner-level attorneys. His Craigslist post received nearly 500 responses from lawyers in Ohio and New York City.

The firm currently has nine lawyers that operate out of a 500-square-foot office in Cleveland, but do most of their work from home and make client site visits in the same way that many information technology consultants do. The Med City News has an in-depth interview with Mr. Ghannoum in which he discusses how the firm has already attracted 20 clients in four short months. The firm attracts clients based on their bare bones approach and it’s ability to pass cost savings on to clients without sacrificing quality.

Although some may see this as a completely radical way to start a firm, in reality it’s just a passing of the guard from the old way of doing things to the new way. The consulting and advisory industry has been thinking outside the box for almost a decade now in setting up their business structure, all it took was a near economic meltdown for the legal industry to begin doing the same.

A blogger by the name of H. Luiz has come up with an interesting list outlining his reasons that one should not go to law school. Some of it is true and some of it is not, and below you’ll find YTL’s take on these reasons:

1. Financial suicide
   • I will somewhat agree with this one, but depending on what you would have done other than becoming a lawyer you’d probably have less income and job security over the long haul
2. Sucks the creativity out of you
   • Again this is a half truth. One doesn’t have to go to a cookie cutter employer after law school. There are plenty of non-profits and non-traditional jobs out there for attorneys. You’ll have more options as an attorney.
3. There’s an 80% chance you’ll breakup with your significant other
   • This one I will have to agree with, however I’m not sure about the exact accuracy of the number.
4. The Bar is brutal
   • Agreed, but is anything worth having?
5. Top jobs are scarce
   • This depends on your definition of a “top job.” If a top job means top compensation then that is true of any profession.
6. Work insane hours
   • Again, it depends. Some do and some don’t. There are plenty of small business owners out there that work harder than lawyers, but don’t make near the amount of money. Nothing is easy.
7. Law professors are pretentious
   • Some are and some aren’t. Many times intellectuals come off as pretentious, but that is just because they are smarter than you.
8. Harassing legal questions from friends and family
   • No argument here.

According to the Associated Press, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is accused of wrongfully diverting millions of dollars from the NBA franchise’s home arena to help make up for cash shortfalls incurred by the team, according to a lawsuit filed by a company controlled by the team’s former owner.

The lawsuit claims Cuban covered the Mavericks’ financial shortfalls by obtaining more than $29 million in unauthorized loans through a limited partnership designed to distribute profits from the arena, the American Airlines Center. It accuses the Mavericks and three other companies controlled by Cuban of breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment.

The company that filed the suit, Hillwood Center Partners, is controlled by former Mavericks owner Ross Perot Jr. and holds a small interest in the arena’s limited partnership, Radical Arena. A related Perot company sold the Mavericks to Cuban in 2000.

Cuban’s poignant response: ”I can only offer my opinion, which is that Ross Perot Jr must be desperate from the losses he has suffered from VIctory and his hedge funds. My lawyers have been open with our minority partners, and in Mr Perot’s case, very minority, about the loans to the Mavericks. The loans have been used to put the best possible Mavericks team on the court, which in turn created the NBA’s longest sellout streak and drove business to the AAC/COC, and to Perot’s Victory development. As best I could tell, he was very happy to take advantage of the traffic when he had an economic interest in Victory to do so. Unfortunately for Mr Perot, he was apparently unable to capitalize on the benefit and is trying to find nickels in the sofa cushion.

It is my understanding that Mr Perot has received legal notice of the loans since they began, right after the Mavs appearance in the Finals as we tried to improve the team further. Only he knows why he has chosen to file a lawsuit and to make it public. The unfortunate reality is that this is the nature of our business relationship with Mr Perot. From all i can tell, he could care less if the Mavs ever win a game. I have to tell you that the biggest mistake I made in buying the Mavs was in not completely buying out his interest.”

Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a company may be served with a 30(b)(6) deposition notice which will require a corporate representative to testify on behalf of the corporation. It is a powerful tool that allows requires the corporation to respond to questions regarding specific topics contained in the notice. It is then the corporation’s responsibility to seek out the right officers and employees to speak on each topic. A company can provide as many witnesses as it needs to cover all the requested topics.

For young lawyers it is imperative to conduct proper due diligence on the topics contained in the notice. When you fully understand the important issues, only then can you identify the right person to speak on behalf of your client. Also, even though a 30(b)(6) designee is testifying on behalf of the corporation, that does not generally limit the scope of questions. Most judges will allow the witness to answer questions outside the scope of the notice as long as the witness is testifying in an individual capacity regarding the out-of-scope topics and not as a corporate spokesperson.

The most important part of this process is making sure you pick good designees and fully prepare them to only answer the questions asked. It is the witness’s job to force the questioning attorney to ask questions. Designees that are too helpful or over explain themselves always hurt the company. Concisely answering questions is the only way to go.

A very successful attorney once told me that I should always act like a “duck swimming.” I was taken aback by the exact meaning of this, but luckily he went on to explain that ducks swim gracefully over a pond with no indication of the madness that is occurring under water. When you see the duck you don’t immediately think about how hard or fast his feet are moving or the possible predators that he is avoiding beneath him. All you see is the duck gliding across the water as if it is the easiest task in the world.

Similarly, the best lawyers make their jobs look easy without ever letting you know about the mayhem most likely occurring beneath the surface. They are positive and always seem to be in total control. The more you have on your plate, the more you have to act as if you aren’t on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Who wants to hire the attorney that is always complaining about being tired or too busy. Who wants to give the exhausted associate an important project when it appears as though he or she is on the verge of pulling their own hair out. Regardless of what is going on in your life and how you feel, it’s best to keep a poker face. You don’t want to miss out on the next big thing while you’re stressed about the current one. After all, your time is your product and it doesn’t make sense to act as though you’re constantly sold out.

The confirmation hearings for Second Circuit Judge Sonia Sotomayor begin today at 9 a.m., and they are expected to last through the week. Sotomayor has already received the top rating from the American Bar Association, and polls show a slim majority of Americans believe she should be confirmed to be an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

According to the New York Times, Robert Bowman will not be permitted to practice to law in the state of New York after taking four tries to pass the bar exam. The problem seems to be the roughly $400,000 in student loan debt that he has accumulated through the years.

The committee that reviews applications for admission to the bar interviewed Bowman and evaluated his debt. They called his persistence remarkable and recommended he be approved to practice. However, five state appellate judges did not agree. This spring those judges decided that Bowman’s student loans were too big for him to practice law in New York.

The judges wrote, “applicant has not made any substantial payments on the loans… applicant has not presently established the character and general fitness requisite for an attorney and counselor-at-law.” So now Bowman finds himself in a lose-lose situation. He amassed this debt in his efforts to become a lawyer, but now he is told that he has too much debt to be a lawyer.

In Texas, the general standard for admission is don’t lie, cheat, or steal. After all, those are issues of moral turpitude and could be an indicator of a lawyer’s poor character, but too much in student loans sets a scary precedent.

Granted that $400,000 is a lot of debt, but if not allowed to practice then how will Bowman ever be able to pay it back. Perhaps there is a state out there that will admit him regardless of his debt, unfortunately he’ll probably rack up more debt studying for their bar exam.

Fortune online has a great article about advice that most influenced some very accomplished individuals’ lives. As they put it, “in a world of uncertainty, we could all use a little advice.” Some are mere cliches, but they make for a good read and provide some invaluable information.