What was your route to the top? After graduating from law school, I was a law clerk for the Honorable Harry D. Leinenweber in the federal district court for the Northern District of Illinois. I joined Butler Rubin as an associate in January of 1994 and was elevated to partnership in January of 1999. Over my time at the firm, I went from being the most junior associate staffed on a case to first chairing disputes involving tens of millions of dollars. I was elected to the firm's management committee in 2004 and to its compensation committee in 2007, have been re-elected to both committees at each term's expiration, and continue to serve on the committees to this day.

What keeps you up at night? (i.e. What are your biggest business-related concerns?) Among my concerns is how Butler Rubin can best adapt to changes in the legal marketplace such as the growing cost and complexity of electronic discovery, the move to outsource certain functions that were traditionally performed by attorneys and paralegals, and the increased focus on work-life balance. Another concern is how changes in the industries that we serve can and should impact our provision of legal services. One example of such a change is the enactment of new cybersecurity regulations that require the protection of non-public information. As a result of the regulations, new protocols must be implemented when exchanging such information with the opposing party in discovery or transmitting the information to arbitrators.

What is the best leadership advice you provided, or received, and why do you think it was effective? The best leadership advice I received was to do what you believe is right and in the best interests of your constituency, whether it be your law firm, your partners, your team, or your client. This advice was effective because people are much more likely to be receptive to your ideas and decisions if they are confident that you are acting in their best interests, rather than acting in your own self-interest.

Looking back, what do you wish you had known when you started out in the legal profession? I wish I had known how much of the legal profession does not actually involve the law. In addition to understanding statutes, cases, and the forum rules, you need to become knowledgeable about the industry engaged in your matters, the companies and people in that industry, and the lawyers and law firms that practice in the same space as you. Success is not just a matter of mastering the discrete facts of the case. A broader sense of the overall economics of the transaction in dispute is integral to understanding which facts are important and which arguments will be persuasive. The more you know about the industry in which you practice, the better able you will be to marshal facts and arguments to achieve a successful outcome. In addition, learning about opposing parties and their counsel will enable you to better predict the arguments they are likely to make so that you can plan ahead on how to counter those arguments.