HISTORY OF THE LAW FIRMEarly InfluencesI was fortunate to be encouraged at a very young age to pursue a career in law and to go into my own business. My father became a full-time, self-employed accountant in 1961 after having been employed in industry since the early 1950's. Dad felt frustrated in his jobs in industry because his achievements usually went unnoticed. In addition, Dad's superiors often took credit for his ideas. My father started his accounting business in an inside porch of our modest home on the northwest side of Chicago. My mother acted as a bookkeeper for my father's business and even landed him his first client. My father went to college after serving in the Pacific during World War II. Although he thought about becoming a lawyer, family commitments and financial necessity prevented my father from pursuing a career in law. I was encouraged at a very young age to become a lawyer, partly for myself, and partly to fulfill my father's dream. As a child, accounting, taxes, and the law were a frequent discussion at dinner. My brother, Dan, and I often accompanied my father to visit many of my father's clients. Many of these same clients that we visited as children became my clients after I became a lawyer. I learned at a very young age how my father approached his clients in giving them advice regarding their businesses and personal life. My father stressed honesty, hard work, and quality of service. The clients stayed with my father and allowed his business to grow because he exhibited these qualities. My business has grown over the past 21 years because my clients also see these same qualities in my practice. And Away We Go I started in my own practice just a short time after I graduated from law school. I sent out announcement cards to my father's clients who I had known since childhood. I also established a relationship with many of father's clients from when I previously worked for dad as an accountant during college and law school. I was retained by one of my father's long-term clients to represent him on a large commercial real estate transaction in 1984. This resulted in representing the same client on a corporate matter, a personal property tax matter, and eventually a probate matter. I have never stopped working and have never run out of work since that very first client in 1984. The first client lead to referrals of other clients, etc... I will never forget the trust and faith that my first client showed in me. Although I have retained a great deal of clients through my father's business, most of my current clients do not even know my father. However, both my father's influence and my initiative in establishing a relationship with my father's clients helped establish a base for my practice that has allowed it to prosper. I have been growing twenty percent a year and more for every year that I have been in practice. Plans for the future are continued and steady growth as long as the quality of the services provided to our clients does not suffer. I am a lucky person to have met, Mary Lee, who is my wife and my best friend. We have been blessed to have three beautiful children. Landmark Cases I am really proud of numerous things that have been accomplished for my clients over the past 21 years. Many clients have suffered serious personal, financial, and legal problems for which I have been fortunate enough to find solutions. Many other clients have avoided serious personal, financial, and legal problems through my guidance. These clients have shown their appreciation in various ways. A bond has been formed between myself and these clients that gives satisfaction to me as a professional that cannot be matched anywhere. Although, most of these cases have not made the headlines, they tell a story of human existence that is better than any news story or headline. © 2007 Joseph M. Lucas & Associates, L.L.C. |
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