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Attorney
By
Attorney
Career Profiles of the Profession
Who?
Name:
Gawain Charlton-Perrin
GCP@cs-g.com
What?
Primary Practice Area & Subspecialty Fields:
Professional Responsibility: Chiefly Disciplinary Defense (ARDC Defense) and professional malpractice. Also, I consult with attorneys in preventing malpractice and disciplinary matters and issues.
When?
Years in Practice Area:
Since 1995.
Years in the Legal Profession:
Since 1993.
Where?
Employer:
Cassiday, Schade & Gloor
http://www.cassiday.com
Size/Sector
94 attorneys/Private
City/State:
Chicago, IL
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Law School:
Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent College of Law, Juris Doctor (J.D.) 1993
Other Post-Graduate Education:
DePaul University, Master of Arts With Distinction (M.A.) 1990
Undergraduate School/Degree:
University of Illinois in Champaign/Urbana, Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) 1989
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Why?
Pluses/Challenges of Practice Area:
I count as pluses the ability to work with, oppose and represent very talented attorneys. The challenges are balancing the desire to chart the most ethical course as an attorney, but still zealously represent your client to the best of your abilities. I find those two concerns are not always pulling in the same direction.
Core Skills/Key Knowledge Needed in Your Practice Area:
Be flexible. Be practical. Keep a copy of the current Rules of Professional Conduct very, very handy. I have often found additional information from re-reading sections of rules that I thought I was already thoroughly familiar with.
Advice to Lawyers and Law Students Interested in Your Practice Area:
Read the rules of professional conduct several times. Read the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin and ISBA Bar News for ethics and ARDC cases which are often reported in significant detail.
How?
Career Path to Current Position:
I spent three years prosecuting attorneys at the Attorney, Registration & Disciplinary Commission (ARDC) and have defended attorneys in ARDC proceedings since leaving the ARDC.
Influences and Mentors:
Bradford D. Roth, Jim Grogan, Scott Renfroe, Mary Robinson, George Collins, Peter Lombardo, and Steven H. Mevorah to name a few. I would count many other attorneys as well who have significantly helped me over the years in my career.
Suggested Reading About Your Practice Area:
Read the disciplinary cases to get a feel for the types of violations that are aggressively prosecuted. Save and reread your ethics textbooks from law school. The scenarios in the books make a lot more sense and are more poignant after you have practiced for several years and understand the often conflicting dynamics of the attorney/client/billing and court relationships. The answers seem a lot less easy than they were in law school.
Job Search Techniques Used in Finding Your Position(s):
I worked with my Career Services Office at my law school, which was a tremendous help. Also, I recommend going on as many interviews as you can, especially courtesy interviews. They are very good practice. Also, do not underestimate the power of the old saying, "what goes around comes around" -- Remember that the opposing attorney you treated poorly or unethically in one case may be sitting on the other side of a desk during an interview years later.
Bar Affiliations and Activities:
ABA, ISBA, CBA, and DCBA. I am currently on the ARDC Standing Committee for the ISBA. I also serve on the professional responsibility committees for the CBA and the DCBA.
Recent Professional Publications:
June 2001 Chicago Lawyer. I am also working on several articles to publish in the next couple months.
Recent Professional Presentations:
Speaker at the Ethics Seminar at the ISBA Annual Convention in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin - June 2001.
Memorable Career Moment:
When an ethics Hearing Board entered discipline against an Illinois attorney that I had prosecuted while at the ARDC. It had been a very hard fought battle against two of the best ethics attorneys in the State of Illinois, George Collins and Theresa Gronkiewicz. We disagreed on whether the conduct at issue constituted ethical violations at all since they involved two complicated conflict of interest issues. I was pleased the Hearing Board had accepted my arguments and interpretations of the evidence.
Intriguing Interests:
SCUBA diving. I had the pleasure of recently diving the wreck of the R.M.S Rhone that sank in 1867.
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