Page 12 - Palm Beach Vol 6 No 4

2017 South Florida Superstar
Craig Goldenfarb
The Eternal Student
AALM: When did you rst know you wanted to become an attorney? What drew you to this career?
Goldenfarb: I knew I wanted to be an attorney when I was very young. My mother was a criminal defense attorney in the 1970s and I was fascinated by her job. I loved that law was never about a right or wrong answer; it focused on the analysis of the issue.
AALM: Do you have any mentors or pro- fessors that encouraged you along the way? Goldenfarb: My mentor is my father- in-law. He is a personal injury attorney in Miami and owns a large rm. He took a risk on me and hired me when I graduated from law school, when I was merely dat- ing his daughter. He taught me how to be a trial lawyer and how to run a successful business. I married his daughter, and he has been my good friend and mentor for
22 years.
AALM: What experiences have taught
you the most?
Goldenfarb: I love to fail. omas Edi-
son, when looking for a lament for the light bulb, considered a day a success if he found out 100 substances that did not work as a lament. at way, he could cross 100 possibilities o his list. He ul- timately discovered the right substance. Likewise, when I try new procedures, mar- keting strategies or other things that fail, I know I can cross those attempts o my list.
AALM: What do you nd particularly rewarding about your practice?
Goldenfarb: My practice is extremely rewarding because I truly care about my employees’ experience and my clients’ ex- perience. e mission of my law rm is to create happy employees, which will create satis ed clients. I love running my busi- ness and I love separating insurance com- panies from their money.
AALM: What do you nd particularly challenging about your practice? How to you overcome these challenges?
“The mission of my law rm is to create happy employees, which will create satis ed clients.”
Goldenfarb: e most challenging part of my practice is maintaining a healthy balance between leadership and micro- management. I have a type A personality, which leads to a tendency to want to do everything myself. However, part of lead- ership of a large law rm is hiring people who I trust, and being able to step aside and let them do their jobs.
AALM: What traits do you think make an attorney exceptional?
Goldenfarb: I think the number one trait that makes an attorney exceptional is the ability to lead and motivate others. In my o ce, I have seven department heads, and my goal is to train each of them to be leaders within their department. We spend a great deal of time talking about leader- ship skills and skill sets. A good attorney
is a competent legal technician. A great at- torney is a leader.
AALM: What compelled you to start your own practice?
Goldenfarb: I started my law rm more than 15 years ago. My desire to lead a strong group of talented people led me towanttohavemyown rmandbemy own boss. Now, I have more than 50 em- ployees, who are all vested in the success of the rm, in many ways. I provide in- centives and measurable goals for every department in my law rm, so that each person feels that they are accountable, and part of something larger than them- selves.
AALM: How would you describe the culture of the rm?
Goldenfarb: e culture of my rm is excellent. I have an amazing o ce admin- istrator who trained at Disney World. Her mission is to provide as close to a drama- free o ce as possible, with more than 50 employees, which is certainly a challenge. We want each employee to feel like they are cared about and valued. I go to lunch with every employee a er their 90-day proba- tion period to get to know them. is goes a long way in helping build a culture of caring about others.
AALM: Tell us about your fellow attor- neys at the rm? How do you work to- gether?
Goldenfarb: I have ve lawyers beside myself at my law rm – four litigators and one pre-suit lawyer. We each have consis- tent measurable goals we have to reach, in order for the rm to be successful. We are competitive, but it helps us hold each other accountable. When the group succeeds, we all succeed. is leads to a very healthy re- lationship between us all.
AALM: What case most de ned or rede- ned your practice?
Goldenfarb: e case that most de ned my practice was a wrongful death case I set- tled a few years ago for a signi cant sum. My
12 | www.AttorneyAtLawMagazine.com
Tracey Benson Photography