The Godfather Film Summary

1. In the movie The Godfather, Consigliere Tom Hagan captured the essence of my legal practice: “I have a special practice. I handle one client.” Basically, I run a small law firm of government attorneys that represent a single state-agency client. Specifically, I supervise a division of the West Virginia Attorney General’s Office that represents the State’s Department of Health and Human Resources in state and federal court and administrative tribunals. With five bureaus and over 5,000 employees, the Department is West Virginia’s largest state agency. And because it serves a vulnerable population, provides a broad number of social services, and annually receives billions of federal dollars, the Department frequently confronts complex and potentially very expensive legal issues. It is my job to see that those issues are resolved. In this position, I routinely interact with the Department’s cabinet secretary and her senior staff, as well as members of the Governor’s office. I also play a central role in the decision-making
Though I was raised in southern California, I chose to raise my family in a small city in a rural eastern state. Unlike many people in my adopted home state, I chose to live here, and that has made me appreciate the fulfillment that my city and State provide. I’m often asked why I made that choice, and the answer I give is simple: I wanted fulfillment. Places like California will be just fine. But places like West Virginia need smart people willing to make a difference. After finishing law school and my judicial clerkships, I could have worked anywhere. But I wanted more than a big paycheck. I realized that West Virginia is a place where I can make a difference just by choosing to raise my family here. And, selfishly, I derive enormous professional satisfaction seeing my efforts improve the way people