August 20, 2024
Why was Warrick & Boyn the right fit for you? What was it like transitioning to a smaller firm like Warrick & Boyn? What makes Warrick & Boyn a unique place to work and a unique firm?
For law school, I went to Notre Dame. I picked ND Law for a number of reasons, one of which was I thought it would give me options to practice law around Chicago. At that time, a lot of my friends lived in Chicago, my wife’s family lived northwest of Chicago, and my family lived in northwest Indiana. I worked downtown the Summer after my 1L year. I learned that even working as a Summer Associate, you spend a lot of time commuting to work. The cost of living was much higher than growing up in the corn and bean fields of Northwest Indiana. While attractive, it was not a fit for me. After my 2L year, I summered as a Summer Associate in South Bend at one of the offices of one of Indiana’s largest firms. They provided me with an offer upon graduation for their Elkhart office, which I accepted. I had good mentors and the quality of work was what I had hoped. Some of the people I worked with I am still friends with today, but the life of an associate in a small office of a large firm meant that there were too many nights when I came home from work, and my children were getting ready for bed (or in bed already). I did not want that, so my wife and I looked for other opportunities.
That’s why we took a chance on Warrick & Boyn, and I started with the firm as a lateral associate on January 1, 2007. As an attorney, as a professional who helps clients in difficult situations, even now, I have to work late nights every now and then. That is part of the job. But the number of those nights away from the family has dropped substantially from that job in South Bend. The quality of the work is the same as I experienced at my old firm. I believe that part of the reason is that we are located in the heart of an entrepreneurial community. We have a lot of great clients that work to make things happen. Elkhart is a community where people ask “why” and then “do.” My family comes first, and that has never been a problem at Warrick & Boyn. If I need a day to move a kid into college or take a family member to a medical appointment, I can schedule my work around it. In emergency situations, we pick each other up. We are a large enough firm with a lot of combined experience and knowledge to represent and help our clients through just about any situation, but we are not so large that we have a formal governing structure. A partner is truly a partner. An associate’s input and contributions are highly valued. When we hire associates, it is with the idea that they could be partners. We have each other’s back.
You spend more time in your life with people you work with than you do with family members. So, if you can, you should have people around you at work who are friends and family. I think our firm has that feel. Many of our staff have been with our firm for decades, and I think that says a lot about our working environment and how we treat each other.
What have been the most rewarding aspects of your career in the legal field?
I look at being an attorney as a calling. People come to us with problems and we help solve them. Helping clients through difficult situations is the most rewarding aspect of being a lawyer. A close second is helping clients as they create something special. Those situations may not draw national headlines or ever form the basis of a TV show, but they matter the most. We primarily represent clients in school, business, government, or corporate matters. Each of those entities has real people who are stakeholders, employees, and families supported by those entities. Helping them through a difficult situation helps them continue to support those people. Helping them create something special helps them do more to grow or help others.
One of my practice areas that I was able to develop and build at Warrick & Boyn was representing clients in alcohol law matters. With Rachel’s help, we have a really unique set of skills that we have been able to offer clients. I love the creativity and work ethic of brewers, restaurant owners, and other members of that community. There are very few attorneys in the state who can do what we do. Putting the Elkhart entrepreneurial mindset into practice and building that niche has been extremely rewarding. I’m excited to see how it will grow with Rachel taking over the lead in a few months.
You are running for Judge of Elkhart County Superior Court No. 2—why is this important to you, and what inspired you?
Similar to my answer above, I look at serving the community as a judge as a calling. I was a math-physics major (pre-engineering) before I considered law school. I am a first-generation attorney. A judge inspired me to look at law as a career. It was probably due to his mentorship that I first considered that I could be a judge. When I first came to Elkhart, one of the moments that made me feel part of the legal community was when a judge asked me to stick around after a hearing to welcome me to Elkhart. Since then, many judges have made positive differences in my life and have inspired me. I feel that it is the right time in my life to serve the community in a different way. I am excited about the opportunity to approach law from a judge’s perspective. This is an exciting time to be a part of the legal scene in Elkhart County. We will have a new state-of-the-art courthouse within the year that will hopefully serve the community for many, many years to come. Judge Bowers (the judge I will be replacing if elected) was one of the judges who helped get commercial courts started in Indiana, and I am hoping to build on his work. My life’s work has been about service. This is an opportunity to serve the community in another way, and I have been blessed to have so much support.
You have served many local non-profit organizations—such as Loveway, Church Community Services, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Elkhart County. Why is it important to you to be involved in the community?
My goal is to give more to the world than I’ve taken. I have been blessed, so that is going to be tough to do. I was taught to leave things better than when I found them. To add one more catchphrase, my Grandpa used to say, “When we build, we build to last.” Putting all of that together, the point of this life for me is not to own the most homes or have a specific amount of money in the bank when I die. At my funeral (hopefully a long time from now) my guess is that it will be highly unlikely that someone says, “I came here today to thank Andrew for that amazing brief he wrote in 2020. That second paragraph was really well written.” Life is about how you serve others–your spouse, children, family, friends, and community. I believe that sustainable community change requires everyone to be involved in some way. I have served on boards, committees, and as a volunteer. As a firm, we frequently attend fundraisers and events for many of our local non-profits. Our local non-profit organizations fill in the gaps and reach those in need in ways no other organization can. I have made a lot of friends through non-profits, and I have seen a lot of cool things happen. But it only happens if all of us are involved.