I was raised in a family of entrepreneurs and cowboys. And there is a certain cowboy culture. I think the word that most people think about when they think of cowboys is grit. What grit really stands for is resilience, integrity, and tenacity. So that is just part of my DNA, and then my family is not only cattle ranchers, they are entrepreneurs.

So I have always approached the practice of law using those character traits. They have sustained me in the difficult times, and they have propelled me forward in the good times. And being entrepreneurial is very important in the practice of law, not only do you need to understand the legalities of practicing, but you need to understand where your clients are coming from. And very often insurance carriers and businesses that we represent, they have entrepreneurial values and they have financial goals as well as legal goals. And so I think I have a good understanding of what my clients need because of my background and history, and that’s what I bring to bear.

What I do with my clients is I need to understand what their goals are for litigations. So what I do is I meet with them and I hear, and I listen to what their goals are. And certainly with businesses and insurance companies in particular, over the years, their goals have changed. And so it used to be that they were very interested in trying cases and that’s not so true anymore. What they’re interested in, in life of the claim, which is how fast can you evaluate a case, how fast can you get a case closed? And whether that’s through trial or whether that’s through settlement, that’s what they’re trying to do here. And so I don’t’ give advice. I actually listen to them; what are their goals; what do they want to accomplish?

And then Rick and I, you know, we’ve been practicing in a very long time, and so collectively we have over 50 years of trial experience. So based on that we can quickly evaluate cases. And so we listen to them, what their goal