Today in the Law School Insider we explore the journey that Larry Nolan, alumnus of Cooley Law School as well as a lawyer with Nolan, Thomsen and Villas, P.C. in Eaton Rapids, Michigan and is the 2016-2017 President of the State Bar of Michigan.
Mr. Nolan always knew that he wanted to be a lawyer. He great up watching the Huntley Brinkley reports and watching what lawyers did within the civil rights movement. He also found early inspiration through watching Perry Mason televisions.
Throughout his entire career, he found that no matter what he was doing that through preparation opportunities presented themselves. To find these opportunities Larry mentioned that you have to work hard and show that you belong in the field.
Larry Nolan also found that if the law is really what you want to pursue you have to truly love it. As if you love the law, you will find the other success that you need in your career.
Larry also found that his success came from reading. He stated that everyone needs to "read....read....read".
Larry shared the story of F. Lee Bailey and how he selected the cases that he wanted to be a part of. F. :ee Bailey mentioned that when selecting cases he looked for ones that:
- had a huge amount of notoriety
- was a challenge professionally
- paid him a lot of money
Larry mentioned that for lawyers even like F. Lee Bailey, he lost more cases than he won, but he was always well prepared. Larry always remembered this in his own professional practice and made sure that he was always better prepared than the other side.
In talking about his own law school experience, Larry Nolan mentioned that he wished that he had gone on a study abroad during law school to gain an understanding of how different countries and lawyers in those countries dealt with things.
He also mentioned that he would read and learn more from many of the famous trials in history.
Larry left us with a great story from a recent trial that he worked on, representing many families of the USS Iowa sailors that were killed in an explosion in the case: Walter Gene BLAKEY, Personal Representative of the Estate of Walter Scot Blakey, Deceased; Walter Gene Blakey; Mary Lou Blakey, individually,
Plaintiffs-Appellants,
v.
U.S.S. IOWA; United States Navy; United States of America,
Defendants-Appellees. In the story that he showed he explained that though he did not win this case, the case would not have been possible without his connection to the family of one of sailors, Scott Blakey.
Larry Nolan mentioned that even though he never looked for this court case while in church, because the family knew he was a lawyer, they reached out. This led to connecting to other families and having a case that not only was important for him personally, but also for the country.
Larry has had an amazing career and in concluding the interview with him, he shared the following advice:
- Be totally immersed in the law
- Don't forget you have an outside life to the law
Did you like this interview? Are you intererested in the criminal law? Leave a comment below to let me know!
Are you a practicing lawyer? A law student? Would you like to be a guest on an upcoming episode of the Law School Insider? Send me an email at lawschoolinsider@cooley.edu