Training
I grew up in a working class family, the youngest of three boys, in New Jersey. My grandfather, William Gleason, immigrated as a young teen from Pallas Green, Limerick, to Scranton, PA, and was the hero conductor of the infamous Laurel Line train robbery of 1923.
My father was also a railroad and mine worker, who moved our family to Dover NJ before I was born. I was extremely fortunate to graduate from Fordham University in the Bronx (where I was the editor of the literary journal as well as a bartender and bouncer), and enjoyed a semester in Irish studies at University College Cork. I won the legal writing competition in my first year at Seton Hall Law in Newark NJ, which at that time meant a full law school scholarship and Law Review editor position.
I practiced as a litigation and appellate advocacy associate at a century-old law firm in Portsmouth, New Hampshire; a huge shift from the Bronx and Newark. This traditional New England lawyering meant representing any citizen or business with a legal problem. Within two years I was experienced in solo jury trials, administrative hearings, assisting in complex federal litigation, and even arguing before then NH Supreme Court Justice David Souter (just before he moved up to the United States Supreme Court). I moved back to New York to edit trial and procedure manuals for Matthew Bender. I later became experienced in the corporate buyer side, working as a contract in-house analyst and legal manager (at Prudential).
My legal, acting and writing experience transferred into the business world. In 2005 I was hired as a Director of Business Development, and within one year was Managing Director of Kelly Services’ legal division in New York and NJ.
When the recession hit, I became a Director of Business Development at Legal Processing Outsourcing pioneer Mindcrest, and left in 2010 to become Vice President of Corporate and Legal Consulting, Chase Cost Management (“CCM” soon to be acquired by LAC Group). I opened up CCM to cost reduction consulting for major corporate law departments and expanded our AmLaw 100 law firm client list, using a sophisticated consultative approach. I’ve since been assisting leading artificial intelligence start-ups in getting a foothold in the US legal world, and consulting for practical state-of-the-art tech solutions to increase legal efficiencies. I’m currently working with General Counsel, Chief Legal Officers, and Legal Ops professionals innovating litigation support as an Enterprise Executive for US Legal Support.
Writing & Acting
I’m a writer and actor as well as a former attorney and sales executive. In addition to my legal career, I optioned an action screenplay based in part on my legal experience representing Irish civil rights groups. I trained in traditional kung fu at the original Shaolin Temple in China (as well as the USA Shaolin Temple) and studied at Zen Mountain Monastery for a Harper Collins-commissioned book, and earned my SAG AFTRA card by portraying cops, criminals, and doctors on several daytime dramas and independent films. (My acting career started when I nearly became the new “Irish Spring” actor; I wrote about that experience in this article.) I also designed and helped build out a loft in Williamsburg Brooklyn two decades ago, where I still live with my wife and daughters, one of the early homesteaders in what became hipster ground zero.
I’ve found that high-level legal sales and consulting requires intelligence, resilience, creativity, empathy as well as communicative skills. This site allows me to share some of my insights – not necessarily legal – to assist others.