Coplan Gardner & Mignone is an all-female firm with two attorneys, Lisa Coplan Gardner and Marzena Mignone, a law clerk and a paralegal. They are holding a grand opening reception tonight at their Neptune Beach office.
WHO ELSE IS ON STAFF?
Meade Marston Coplan, Gardner’s stepmother, is the law clerk for the firm. She is a recent graduate of Florida Coastal School of Law and is waiting to see if she passed the bar exam. Terri Hopper is their paralegal.
WHAT TYPE OF LAW DO THEY PRACTICE?
The firm specializes in criminal law, family law, real estate law, simple bankruptcies, wills and trusts.
WHY FOCUS ON
THESE AREAS?
“I mostly specialize in family law,” said Gardner. “I’m very concerned about the future of children because the divorce rate is so high. I’m very concerned about how they’re growing up. I do family law to be the voice for children because they’re often forgotten.”
WHY DID SHE GO TO
LAW SCHOOL?
“While in was in high school, my parents divorced. My mother’s attorney was Brent Shore. He took me aside and asked how I was doing. I thought it was great that he cared. He became my idol.”
HER BACKGROUND?
Gardner was previously at Eckert, Benson & Associates. Her husband worked in the State Attorney’s Office with Mignone.
WHAT ABOUT THE
OTHER PARTNER?
Mignone concentrates her practice on criminal law issues. “I just left the State Attorney’s Office after working for Tromberg & Kowalski,” said Mignone. “They [Tromberg & Kowalski] suggested I gain experience in litigating, which is what I got at the State Attorney’s. Criminal law is what I know how to do. When I left, I decided to go into practice with Lisa. We’ve known each other since law school. I will eventually practice international adoption law.”
WHY INTERNATIONAL ADOPTIONS?
“I was born in Poland and raised in France so I speak both languages,” said Mignone. “I left when the country [Poland] was still communist. There are a lot of orphans over there. I want to pick them up and give them the same chance I had. I have spoken with individuals and governmental agencies in Poland who do adoptions but setting this up will take at least a year. There is a lot of interest in international adoptions here. Most moms nowadays are putting their careers before their children only to find out later that they can’t have them. More women are going through higher studies and they’re in their 30s before they start a family. Nature can make waiting more difficult.”
WILL SHE STILL PRACTICE CRIMINAL LAW?
“We might get another partner to pick up the criminal law practice at that time,” said Mignone.
WHY FORM THE PARTNERSHIP?
“The decision was based on friendship, but I also wanted to be part of a firm with flexible hours that took competition out of the equation and focused on teamwork,” said Mignone. “I have a 10-month-old infant so I needed another woman who would understand my needs.”
WHAT IS THE GOAL OF
THE FIRM?
“We wanted it be a women-only firm,” said Gardner. “As women, we understand each other. Our goal is to reduce the stress of a law firm environment, to be efficient without sacrificing our personal lives or families. I’m getting ready to start my own family. We also wanted to eliminate the drive time, as we all live at the beach.”
ISN’T DOWNTOWN MORE CONVENIENT FOR YOUR PRACTICE?
“We do have to go to the Duval County Courthouse,” said Gardner. “But I was born at the beach and grew up out here. I know the mentality of beach residents. They don’t want to go over that bridge. There are approximately 90,000 people out here and it’s growing. I have a large clientele. I hope they’ll eventually open a courthouse out here. Plus, we have an annex office on University Boulevard that just opened a couple of weeks ago. It’s a place to meet clients to make it more accommodating for them.”
HOW’S THE COMPETITION?
“I think there are only two or three family law lawyers that are women [at the beaches],” said Gardner. “Both men and women seem to want women attorneys, from my experience. My strategy in representing clients is very different. We’re competitive with our rates and work out payment arrangements because it can be difficult for individuals to come up with a lot of money.”
HOW ELSE ARE YOU DIFFERENT
FROM THE REST?
“When we started opening this branch in February, we had to re-do everything,” said Gardner. “We wanted to create a very family-oriented environment. The front room has a TV and a trunk full of kids’ toys and VCR tapes. We also have a special bed for the office dog, Princess. We put a lot of thought into making the decor soothing.”
HOW IS BUSINESS?
“It’s going very well,” said Gardner. “A lot of clients came with me from Eckert & Benson. Basically, I work on referrals.”
YOUR LAW CLERK’S FUTURE?
“Meade is 58,” said Gardner. “She saw me and my husband going through law school and decided she wanted to go. Meade’s going to be doing mostly real estate law. She is a broker now and has worked for Phoenix Realty.”
WHY GO BACK TO SCHOOL LATER IN LIFE?
“I never had a chance to do it when I was younger between working and children,” said Coplan. “I met Lisa and Marzena at law school. I had to relearn how to study because I hadn’t been in school for awhile.”
WHERE WERE YOU WORKING BEFORE?
“I’ve done commercial real estate since 1984,” she said. “I will be doing both residential and commercial real estate law including closings, foreclosures, evictions, landlord/ tenant law, development services and land trusts.”
— by Monica Chamness