John Miller doesn’t categorize himself as an old-school attorney.
He doesn’t wear the typical suit — he’s OK with a shirt and tie.
He’s not in a Downtown office building, instead preferring his native beach and winds that gently blow outside his open windows.
He’s dedicated to the law and helping people, but is just as passionate about his nearly 30-year-old local band that continues to jam.
He might not be an old-school attorney. Or one even in a big firm. But’s he’s been a success — he recently was honored as the 2016 JAX Chamber Small Business Leader of the Year.
“It’s cool to work this long and have people genuinely happy when you get an accolade like this,” he said.
It’s an accolade he garnered by doing things his own way for quite some time.
Choosing his own path
Miller grew up the son of a Presbyterian preacher father, moving around the Southeast every several years when the job demanded.
When his father graduated from seminary, he headed with the family to Alabama during in the early 1960s, a period of heightened racial tension. His father wasn’t always the most popular guy in town. He was hated by the Ku Klux Klan, Miller said, for acts that included providing communion to black people in Tuskegee, Ala.
At times, white people chose to walk across the street instead of passing by him.
As Presbyterian ministers did, it wasn’t long before it was time to again move.
Miller said at the time he didn’t like the constant packing up and shuffling on. It meant constantly having to make new friends.
Nowadays, it would be hard to see the outgoing Miller not easily doing so.
“I like people,” he said, with a broad smile and jovial tone. “I’m one of those friends you haven’t met yet.”
Miller didn’t follow in his father’s footsteps into the church — his little brother did that — nor did he pursue a military career like his grandfather, Francis Miller.
The decorated Army colonel knew decades of U.S. presidents as a member of the Office of Strategic Services during World War II. He was even in Adolf Hitler’s office the day Berlin fell, Miller said.
Miller said he went into law mainly to help people. He settled in Jacksonville after law school at Washington & Lee University in Virginia.
He bought his historic home at Atlantic Beach, a place he loves, and started working Downtown for what is now Taylor, Day, Grimm & Boyd.
After moving to a commercial firm for several years, his entrepreneurial spirit took hold.
Learning on his own
When he opened his own small firm, he quickly learned a lesson: Law school doesn’t teach you business.
He joined the Beaches Chamber in the mid-1990s, back before it was affiliated with JAX Chamber.
After a couple of years, he left — it wasn’t the place it is today.
“They’ve really stepped up their game,” he said, rejoining the chamber five years ago.
He admits he wasn’t knowledgeable at the time on how to make his business work best.
Small firm owners have to treat their office like any other business — that means networking and marketing. It’s a lesson he tells young lawyers nowadays.
But, he’s made it work over the years and benefitted from an online practice advisory program, aptly named howtomanageasmalllawfirm.com. One of the takeaways: Branding himself better.
That’s when he knew simply using his name wouldn’t suffice and Rock Solid Business Law was born.
It works on many levels, he said.
The first, “Rock” pays homage to his love of playing music. Friends suggested he should have taken it a step further and become “Rock Star Law,” an idea he laughs at.
Rock Solid also represents the type of foundation he tries to help lay for his clients, whether it be business transactions, wills and trusts or real estate law.
The sword in the stone as a logo? An ode to the legendary tale of Arthur. Every client, he said, has their own sword stuck in a stone — it’s his goal to help them free it.
“Law is a way I can help people,” he said. “It took me a few years to form a practice that really helps, but we’ve made lives better.”
Over the years, he’s helped about 100 chamber members with their legal business needs.
And the past couple of years have been a boon — two years ago, business doubled. Last year, it increased 50 percent from that.
“It’s been a good ride,” he said. “The kind of people who choose us to serve them are the kind of people who appreciate our outlook on life.”
That includes a strong “no jerks allowed” policy. They’re referred elsewhere.
He does a little probate work, but for the most part isn’t a courthouse staple.
“We’re not a pit bull law firm,” he said proudly.
A little celebration
One of the more common things Miller does is home closings. He does it with his own style, though.
Closing day can be filled with nerves and mounds of paperwork for buyers and sellers, especially first-timers.
For many, he said, it’s supposed to be one of the biggest days of their lives. You wouldn’t know it from the often awkward, silent affair. So Miller and his team try to bring a little fun into it.
“We are going to celebrate when they’re done,” he said.
Out comes healthy snacks, coffee and a complimentary bottle of champagne to pop.
Everyone involved is invited, toasting to the next phase of their lives. It’s a stress reliever and an opportunity for both sides to get to know each other a little bit outside the transaction.
“We’re boutique,” he said. “We care about people … 98 percent of them leave with a smile on their face.”
Recently, Miller did a little celebrating of his own.
Making it to the top
He was nominated by the Beaches Division of the JAX Chamber as its representative for the annual small business award.
Part of him didn’t think it was possible. Besides, another attorney also was nominated and Miller thought they might split votes.
The interview portion was with the dozen or so nominees from the year before. Nerve-wracking, Miller said, until he walked out.
“I realized it was kind of fun,” he said. “I kind of wanted to do it again.”
Nominations also meant creating a booklet about yourself that included testimonials.
Miller’s included letters of support from Hank Coxe, the Bedell Firm partner and a fellow Washington & Lee grad, and Mark Lamping, the Jacksonville Jaguars president.
It worked. During a breakfast reception this month, Miller was named the winner among his peers, thanking his wife.
Later that evening, he was celebrating again — this time Mardi Gras through another passion.
Another successful passion
Miller will be the front man for the JAX Chamber’s small business efforts this year.
He’s been a front man for his band for much, much longer.
Miller started the popular BayStreet band — once known as Bay Street Blues Club — in 1987 as a way to play blues with his friends.
Back then, they all worked Downtown and ended up practicing after work in a bank building while the cleaning crew made the rounds.
Rehearsals at houses often became parties and, as he said, “the police decided that was not such a good idea.”
They started getting gigs across the city, especially the Beaches. It wasn’t lucrative — they just loved playing music together. BayStreet has earned accolades over the years.
Miller, the lead singer and bassist, said one of the best nights was when the band opened for the legendary B.B. King at the Florida Theatre.
At one point, the icon called Miller on stage, hugged him and had him take a bow.
Truly an “awesome” moment, he said.
They’ve recorded their own live albums at the Florida Theatre, too. Over the years they’ve incorporated classic rock, ’80s rock, old-school R&B, a little Motown.
It’s been a fun ride, he said, for the music and for his business.
It’s not over yet — and until it is, he’ll continue doing it his own way.
@writerchapman
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