Fall 2009 - Atlanta - Divorce Lawyer - Family Law - Atlanta Georgia

Casual Contemplationsby Heidi Geigerheidi@geigerlaw.comWhy do I practice Family Law?Why? Why? Why? Admit it.We have all had days whenwe question our career choice.Sometimes we have several days in a rowwhen we may be losing our religion. Theclient who took several years to create themess they are in expecting you to straighten itout and fix it in 30 days and then not pay you100 percent of your fees. The secretary whoforgot to calendar a court date. The spousewho doesn’t understand why you stayed inmediation until 8 p.m. Your grandma whothinks you should help families stay togetherrather than break them up. The step-kid whowants to see “the little card that let’s you takewhatever you want” that his mom told himabout. (Your bar card a.k.a. license to steal.)The guy at the neighborhood pool with a“quick divorce question.” The brother-in-lawwith a speeding ticket.Acquaintances come and go. Childrengrow up. Clients move on. Statutes change.Case law updates. Technology accelerates.Security tightens. Stock markets crash. Taxesincrease. Benefits decrease. Some medicationhelps. But what remains the same, consistentand dependable? The fellowship of our Bar.Not only do we work together. We go toeach other’s weddings. We go to each other’sfunerals. We handle each other’s divorces.We send birthday cards and sympathy cardsto each other. We help each other run foroffice. We go to the beach together. Even if wechange law firms, we are still engaging with,working with, battling with each other. Wedeal with the same group of folks for the mostpart.I have read a statistic that people willchange jobs or careers an average of eightto ten times in their life. I’ve been practicingFamily Law for 14 years now. I anticipatedoing it for another 30. One of the things thatI really look forward to is working with andlitigating with my fellow members of theGeorgia Family Law Section. I feel lucky to notbe a part of that statistic.I found two quotes to share with you.Robert McAfee Brown:“How does one keep from "growingold inside"? Surely only incommunity. The only way to makefriends with time is to stay friendswith people…. Taking communityseriously not only gives us thecompanionship we need, it alsorelieves us of the notion that we areindispensable.”Virginia Woolf:“One of the signs of passing youth isthe birth of a sense of fellowship withother human beings as we take ourplace among them.”A quick summary of my last 14 yearswould be something like this. Being the greenlawyer, first jury trial, owning a cell phone,getting married, buying a house, changingfirms, starting my own firm, enduringback surgery, speaking at CLE seminars,watching the World Trade Center collapse,going through secretary after paralegal aftersecretary, getting in shape, disbelieving thata judge was actually shot and killed on thebench, trying to have a baby, having a baby,using a Blackberry, finding a nanny, jugglingwork and family, gaining weight, marketing,father dying, trudging along through arecession. Every step of the way there hasbeen a Family Law lawyer advising me,encouraging me, supporting me and makingme laugh.Thanks! I’ll see you in court… or atmediation… or at the beach…or at yourbirthday party… or for lunch…FLRGeiger & Associates, LLC, wasestablished as a Family Lawpractice in 2000. Located inthe historic Vinings Village,Heidi Geiger is the principalof the company which providespersonal attention to each andevery client, helping them through difficult times.24Fall 2009