Today in the Law School Insider we explore the journey that Thomas Cranmer, attorney with the Miller Canfield Law Firm went on to find the success he has had in his own legal career.
Thomas Cranmer is a trial lawyer who concentrates his practice in civil and criminal litigation. With more than 35 years of courtroom experience, his practice focuses on white-collar criminal defense, complex commercial litigation and "bet-the-company" litigation.
He is recognized as one of Michigan’s leading lawyers. He has been listed in the Top 10 Attorneys in every edition of Michigan Super Lawyers and he has been the highest, second highest or third highest rated attorney out of more than 44,000 Michigan attorneys for the past nine years in a row. In 2015, he received the Excellence in Defense Award from the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel. He was also recognized by Michigan Lawyers Weekly as its Lawyer of the Year for 2014.
While Thomas Cranmer has been very successful for all outward appearances, he is first to acknowledge that he was in the "middle of the pack" in law school. To be able to find the success that he wanted for himself he had to be diligent and focused as well as hard-working both in law school and in his career. This focus and diligence was something that he wished that he had realized earlier in law school as he found that "law school success or lack thereof seems to follow you through your career." Thomas Cranmer was able to get past his lack of diligence in law school but it was a lot of hard work. As he reflected on his own experience he stated that others should make sure to "be the best they can be and work as hard as you can because it translates into the job market."
In thinking about his own success Thomas Cranmer first thought that success equated to getting into a "good " law school. Now that he has been in the legal field for many years he now finds that success is "making the best of the situations and cases that are presented to you and coming up with the best outcome for your client."
In the end Thomas Cranmer shared that "Digging in, being diligent and well prepared in law school" can be something that you can work on if it does not come naturally. If you struggle with this, Thomas Cranmer suggests the following three tips:
- Understand that it is never too late to start working on this!
- Recognize when you are not giving it your all
- Find a study group that you can trust early in law school
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