Page 39 - Miami Vol 8 No 1

2019 RISING STAR
Gabriel Garay
With the Moose
AALM: When did you rst know you wanted to become an attorney? What drew you to this career?
Garay: I always wanted to be an attorney. A er graduating from UF, I did real estate and construc- tion for about four years and then decided it was time to pursue a le- gal career. I’ve always been drawn to the law. e whole framework of this country, the whole experi- ment, is based on the idea that laws are to be followed regardless of whether you’re in a position of power or not.
When I was young, my parents’ dream was for me to be a physician. To them having their children become doctors was like winning the Super Bowl. My little brother, who always wanted to be a doctor, is a doctor. My half-sister is a doctor. My grandfather was a doctor. Two great-uncles on my mother’s side were doctors. I was des- tined to be a disappointment.
AALM: Who is your current men- tor? What is the best lesson they’ve taught you so far?
Garay: My boss, Bob Parks, has been an incredible mentor. He’s rec- ognized as one of the best trial law- yers to ever do it. Learning from him has been invaluable. Anyone who knows him also knows he’s a great hu- man being.
e best lessons: Keep it simple. Be gracious in victory or defeat.
AALM: Who are some of your legal heroes? Why?
Garay: John Adams. His defense during the murder trial for the eight British soldiers a er the Boston Mas- sacre was brilliant.
AALM: What drew you to your cur-
rent rm? How would you describe the culture there? How would you de- scribe your role within the rm?
Garay: In law school, I knew I wanted to be a trial lawyer. My mock trial coach, H.T. Smith – a brilliant lawyer, told me: “If you want to hunt moose, you have to go where the moose are.” So here I am, with the moose.
e culture here is great. I didn’t get training wheels. I was thrown into the re early. Everyone is expected to own their role. Do the job, do it well.
Our practice is focused on cata- strophic injury cases. My role is to do whatever needs to be done to get our cases ready for trial. Clients hire us to try their cases. at most cases settle is ne, but you prepare them for trial if you want the best result. I love every opportunity to put my cases in front of a jury.
AALM: Where do you see your ca- reer going?
Garay: I’d like to have ownership in a rm one day – get my name on the door and all that.
AALM: Working with senior part-
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ners what is a trait they have that you would like to carry through to the next generation of lawyers? As a newer generation lawyer, what traits do you have that you think senior partners should adopt into their practice?
Garay: Be a professional and have thick skin. Trial work can be stressful, hard work. It’s a contact sport. It shouldn’t be, but some lawyers are going to be obstruc- tionist and unprofessional. Don’t lower yourself to their level.
I own my failures. is pro- fession needs real leaders (and mentors) not lawyers who make
excuses or write o their associates’ performance or lack of work ethic to generational di erences. ere are no bad teams, just ine ective leaders. Ul- timately, if I lose a case or the team underperforms it’s on me.
AALM: What do you enjoy doing outside of work? Hobbies? Sports?
Garay: I have two young children so, happily, they take up most of my free time. I coach my oldest son’s in- tramural soccer team, play golf when- ever I can, and try and get as much time poolside as I can.
AALM: What do you most hope to accomplish in the future?
Garay: Professionally, I want to get better as a trial lawyer every day. ere are a lot of lawyers out there but few good trial lawyers. One day, I hope to be counted as one of the good ones.
THE LAW OFFICES OF ROBERT L. PARKS P.L. 799 Brickell Plaza, Suite 900 Miami, FL 33131
(305) 445-4430 www.robertlparks.com
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