What matters to me today is: Defining “Best”
I’m humbled to share that I have again been recognized as one of the “best” in my profession and area of expertise. Truth be told, the first time I landed on such a list, I was with a prominent national law firm with staff paid for securing these recognitions. I appreciated the lift. I also know innumerable practitioners whose extraordinary competency makes them equally—if not more—deserving.
So what does “best” mean to me?
For more than 30 years, this profession has given me the best opportunities imaginable: representing clients before Cabinet-level officials across three presidential administrations—and an inner-city soccer club displaced from its fields by better-funded teams. I’ve advocated in the Pentagon and petitioned for restoration of benefits for a homeless veteran after his return from Iraq.
Some of those hours were compensated handsomely. Others were given pro bono.
I’ve represented major landowners navigating the public policy intersection of housing and landscape-scale conservation—and families without the resources to complete the adoption of a foster child.
I’ve had the privilege of teaching university and law students, counseling young people considering their futures, writing about law and public policy, and providing for my family through work I genuinely value.
So yes, I gratefully accept the recognition of “best”—but mostly as a description of what this profession has given me: the best opportunities to serve, the best provision for my family, and some of the best experiences of my life—on the clock and off.
That’s what matters to me today in 250 words or less. What matters to you? I’d really like to know.