Page 23 - Miami Vol 7 No 1

Rising Star
Pedro Gassant
A Practice of Passion
AALM: When did you rst know you wanted to become an attorney? What drew you to this career?
Gassant: e Terri Schiavo case is what at- tracted me to the law. at case involved a young woman who su ered a heart attack and was le in vegetative state. Her husband, who had been appointed her legal guard- ian, was convinced that his wife would not have wanted to live in that condition and re- quested that the feeding tubes be removed. What happened a er is what drew me to the law. I was fascinated by the fact that it was lawyers – not doctors – who determined whether a hospitalized citizen would live or die. I knew then and there that the practice of law is paramount in our society.
AALM: How is the practice of law di er- ent than your expectations in law school?
Gassant: Law school focuses a tremen- dous amount of energy on logic and rea- son and tends to dismiss the importance of passion and emotion in e ectively advo- cating a case. e practice of law, however, encourages the utilization of passion and well-timed emotions to e ectively present, and resolve, a case. In addition, law school tends to ignore the fact that law is a service business based on people. e successful practice of law, however, requires a keen understanding that we serve our clients and not merely the whims of logic.
AALM: What drew you to your current rm? How would you describe the culture there? How would you describe your role within the rm?
Gassant: e people are what drew me to Holland & Knight. When I rst inter- viewed at the rm, the rst thing I noticed was the a nity between the sta and the attorneys. e amicable relationship be- tween the sta and the attorneys impressed upon me that the rm’s culture was one that encouraged true comraderie.
AALM: With technology and an ever- global world, how do you see the legal profession evolving over your career? Do you believe this will be positive or nega- tive?
Gassant: Yes. e legal profession will be confronting some signi cant changes in the upcoming years. In years to come, lawyers will not be competing against oth- er lawyers; we will be competing against algorithms and other technology. Adapt- ing ourselves to this technological envi- ronment now is essential to ensuring that we’re ready for the future.
AALM: Working with senior partners what is a trait they have that you would like to carry through to the next genera- tion of lawyers? As a newer generation
Holland & Knight LLP
701 Brickell Avenue, Suite 3300 Miami, FL, 33131 (305) 789-7430 www.hklaw.com
lawyer, what traits do you have that you think senior partners should adopt into their practice?
Gassant: ere is a determined focus our senior partners have that would be an ex- cellent trait to pass on to my generation. I think that one of the core skills that my generation has is the ability to interface with technology. Technology brings much more e ciency and the ability to interface with technology would greatly bene t our senior partners.
AALM: What do you most hope to accom- plish in the future?
Gassant: In the future, I really would like for my kids to look at me and say that I have been an excellent father. at would be a great accomplishment.
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