The firm, which is located on the 33rd floor of Independent Square, was founded by brothers Barry and Elliot Zisser and the late Bud Robison in 1973. Daily Record staff writer Monica Chamness met recently with Barry Zisser to discuss the firm.
WHO WORKS AT THE FIRM?
In addition to the partners — Barry Zisser, Elliot Zisser, Donald Brown, Nancy Nowlis and Donald Maciejewski — the firm numbers 18, including associate Brian Cabrey, paralegal Kimberly Luckie, two law clerks, six secretaries, an office manager, receptionist and runner. “We took over the adjacent space [an extra 1,000 square feet] and broke through the wall. We are looking to add staff, both support personnel and attorneys. With the courthouse moving we are looking to do new things but there are not plans at the moment.”
WHAT KIND OF CASES DO YOU HANDLE?
“Our firm is really a conglomeration of several specialities. We handle all types of family, juvenile, appellate law, criminal law and personal injury.”
WHO IS AN EXPERT IN WHAT SPECIALITY?
“My background is in criminal and family law and we gradually added on. Elliot Zisser is board certified as a specialist in matrimonial law and Don Maciejewski is a board certified aviation attorney. When the opportunity came to merge with Don, we thought it would be a tremendous advantage. He handles torts, aviation law and personal injury litigation. Nancy Nowlis took an affinity to appellate work so that area grew as a result of her interest. Then we picked up Cabrey [formerly with the Department of Children and Families], whose experience was with dependency and juvenile. We’ve had a tremendous influx in these types of cases because of Brian. We consider our firm to be individual specialists practicing collectively so as to cover a broad field of potential legal problems.”
WHAT IS THE FIRM’S LONG TERM GOAL?
“To establish an outlet for the public that’s composed of the three C’s: considerate, compassionate and competent counsel. We want to be the people’s lawyers. I know it sounds trite to say but we want every client to feel at home and like they’re the only client we have. We hire attorneys who are capable of understanding and whose purpose for being is to assist those who have a redress, family dispute or who have been charged with a crime.”
WHAT LESSONS HAVE YOU LEARNED OVER THE YEARS?
“A lawyer has so much riding on everything he does and the impression he leaves with judges, clients, support staff, even strangers. I tell our attorneys that it can take 40 years to build a good business but only 40 seconds to lose it. Be the guy you want your friends and neighbors to be like because honesty and reputation — everything depends on it.”
TO WHAT DO YOU ATTRIBUTE YOUR LONGEVITY AND SUCCESS?
“Simply stated, we are aggressive in a cordial way and we get results. We are in a position to be selective about the cases we take so that we can work on interesting and challenging matters in helping our clients. We also have found that in these times, clients are becoming more sophisticated and interviewing several law firms before making a choice as to who they want to represent them. Clients spread the word when they are treated right.”
WHAT’S DIFFERENT NOW IN THE PRACTICE OF LAW?
“The practice has changed in that many more attorneys are practicing. When I first hung out a shingle, you could conduct business on a handshake. Lawyers are not as trustworthy, in my opinion, as they were. I believe the integrity of the profession has been hurt by lawyers not caring as much as they used to about their reputation. I grew up on the wrong side of the tracks. I never knew a lawyer until I went to college but they were to be respected.”
HOW DO YOU THINK THE PROFESSION’S INTEGRITY CAN BE RESTORED?
“If every lawyer works at elevating the level of the profession to what it was, it will be a much better place for everyone.”
WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST CASE YOU TRIED?
“I handled a very high profile first degree murder case in 1991. It made all the news wires. Alan Brown was accused of murdering his wife, the mother of his two children. Her body was found in the trunk of her car in Regency Square. We secured a verdict of not guilty. The result was a vindication of the jury system, in my opinion. We currently have active cases in seven different states outside Florida. Many of these cases are with attorneys that have called for our assistance as co-counsel in difficult cases requiring our engineering and aviation products liability expertise. Likewise, we frequently co-counsel with other Florida attorneys on difficult, high-stakes divorce matters.”
WHAT IS THE FIRM’S BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT?
“The reputation we’ve earned. We’re known to our clients and the general public as a worthy firm composed of good lawyers and honest people.”