What is the difference between a dead skunk in the road and a dead lawyer in the road? There are skid marks in the front of the skunk. Sadly, there is a reason why there are so many lawyer jokes. And the less-than-flattering reputation of our profession is not necessarily unwarranted. I did not go to law school to be a lawyer; I went to be a prosecutor. As a former police officer, I wanted to help
people by continuing to put the bad guys in jail. I also fancied the idea of going to battle for justice in the courtroom! Unfortunately, I received my bar results in November of 2007--right after the housing bubble burst and it seemed like everyone (lawyers included) was losing their job. Needless to say, assistant prosecutor opportunities in the counties I wanted to work in were in very short supply. But I worked hard in law school and padded my resume with all of the things essential for a “big law” job (Law Review, Moot Court, etc). Accordingly, I was one of the lucky few in my graduating class fortunate enough to gain employment as an attorney just a few short months after receiving my bar results. For the next seven years, I worked as a litigator prosecuting and defending civil actions throughout West Michigan. I really loved the work, but it seemed like money, not people, was always the driving force behind it. After 5 years, I knew in my heart there had to be a better way. After two more, I had the courage to strike out on my own in search of it. In March of 2015, I founded Polaris Law, PLC--not the Law Offices of Gregory R. Todd, Esq., PLC. From the ground up, Polaris Law is intended to provide its Clients a different experience. “Refreshing Legal Solutions” is not an empty slogan, it is the cornerstone on which I built my business. My strategy was to turn the current legal practice model on its head--starting by putting people first. Everything we do is in furtherance of developing relationships with the men and women that need our help--even if that means spending some time helping those that cannot afford our services. We strive to maximize efficiency and minimize overhead in order to provide the highest possible value to our Clients. A few examples of how we do this are: maintaining a paperless office, leveraging technology to save time, and not paying for advertising. While we emphasize Business, Real Estate, and Probate law as our areas of practice, we are a litigation firm first and foremost. For those who do not know, litigation is an action brought in court to enforce a particular right. In other words, the process of bringing or defending a judicial contest or dispute. Or, as I like to tell people, “we handle all matters involving a courtroom--including appeals.”
At this point, you might be thinking, “Wait a minute! A litigation firm whose primary strategy is to save the client money? Are not the results of litigation directly correlated with how much money you spend on the fight?” The short answer is a resounding, “no!”
Litigation is a battle. The tactics of most traditional litigation firms can be equated to the one-size-fits-all tactics employed during the Revolutionary War. Thousands of men with muskets were lined up across from their opponents and exchanged volleys of fire until one side surrendered in attrition. Polaris Law is more akin to a Navy Seal team with close air support and smart bombs. Our tactics are not predetermined, rather they are developed based on the individual needs of our client’s matter and finances. We are firm believers in the principle of diminishing marginal returns. Accordingly, there is generally no need to waste thousands of dollars fighting over every possible issue simply for form’s sake. So, why Polaris Law? Polaris is the North Star. It shines with a humble brightness that belies its navigational importance. As it sits almost directly above the North Pole, it is a reliable gauge of North and has been guiding people for thousands of years. In the last decade, there have been over 20,000 regulations added to the federal register alone. Add to this myriad laws enacted by our state and federal legislatures, executive orders, and tens of thousands of new cases interpreting these law and you can begin to see what a quagmire our legal system has become. Like the North Star, Polaris Law will help you navigate this morass in search of the best possible solution available. So, if you have a legal problem, I humbly ask that you consider letting Polaris law be your guide. My hope is that when our clients hear lawyer jokes, they will think to themselves, “Not mine.”
