Walking Into Tragedy: Death of a Parent

My job often entails walking into a tragedy and then trying to help a family through the difficult terrain of the legal system.

Often, my cases involve the death of a parent. There is no amount of money that will ever come close to compensating for this loss. But even more importantly, there are real time issues that arise. Who’s going to take care of the kids? Where is the money coming from while this case winds its way through the Court system? How do we deal with this loss and even think about courts and lawyers and juries?

Law School does not prepare you for these issues. How could it?

I know that I am not equipped to solve these problems but I am continually amazed at how good people find the courage and strength to go on. I see families put aside long standing differences and put the interests of the children first. I see friends and neighbors step up to help. I see the courts provide some measure of justice. In other words, I have reason to hope. I am thankful to play a small part in helping these inspiring families.