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A Special Father's Day Interview with the Bernstein Family of Lawyers


WJR Radio Detroit - 760 AM
June 15, 2008


Announcer: Now back to the Warren Pierce Show on the Great Voice of the Great Lakes News Talk 760, WJR.

Warren Pierce: Ah, Father’s Day 2008. Steve Martin here as the Father of the Bride at 13 after 8 o’clock, as we zero in here on a Sunday morning, usually like to get to some of the local issues that are affecting those who live, work, and play in Southeast Michigan and the state.

This being Father’s Day, I thought it might be interesting to talk with an attorney whom we see frequently pop up on commercials, for years with his 1-800 Sam phone number. But increasingly we’ve been seeing his two sons and his daughter in the commercials as well. It starts with something like “Hi, I’m Richard Bernstein,” “Hi, I’m Mark Bernstein,, “Hi, I’m Beth Bernstein.”

I thought we’d get them all together and talk a bit about what they may very well be doing for Dad and the story behind the story.

So we’ll start with the Dad. Sam Bernstein, Happy Father’s Day to you. How do you figure you’re going to be spending the rest of this day by the way?

Sam Bernstein: Well, Happy Father’s Day to you and all of your listeners. I’m going to be spending it with my kids. We’re all excited to get together for dinner this evening.

Warren Pierce: Except for Richard. Richard is in New York because he is the marathon runner and the Ironman runner. Are you getting ready, Richard, for that big challenge next Sunday there in New York?

Richard Bernstein: Yes, absolutely Warren. It’s going to be a lot of fun, but I’m going to be home for Father’s Day. My flight leaves in a little bit and I’m looking forward to being with the family tonight.

Warren Pierce: I would assume, Sam, you got into your profession as a result of what your dad was doing while you were growing up?

Sam Bernstein: Absolutely, I would spend a lot of time in the law office with my dad and he practiced with his two brothers.

Warren Pierce: So it’s in the genes, one would think. Your mom was, in one way, shape, or form, correct me if I’m wrong, involved with the law as well.

Sam Bernstein: Well, actually it’s my wife’s mother, Estelle Nelson. She was one of the first female attorneys in the state of Michigan.

Warren Pierce: And going to law school when it was mainly dominated by men?

Sam Bernstein: Right, they would not hire her. She could not get a job as a woman attorney in those days, the early 1900’s.

Warren Pierce: So let me ask the four of you. I’ll start with you, Sam. Was there any apprehension going into the same profession that your dad was in when you were growing up, Sam?

Sam Bernstein: I’m sorry, I didn’t hear that.

Warren Pierce: Was there any apprehension in following in your father’s footsteps going to work in the law profession?

Sam Bernstein: No, it was just a great thrill to become a lawyer. My dad had passed away when I had graduated from college. I started law school after that first year he passed away, and so I did not have the opportunity to practice with my father, which I would have loved to have done.

Warren Pierce: And Mark Bernstein, was there any concern that “Oh gee, maybe I want to try something else”? Did your dad ever suggest or want you to come into the law firm, and you wanted to maybe try something else?

Mark Bernstein: You know, it’s funny. When I graduated from law school and business school, I went to Washington. I worked at the White House in the Clinton administration, and went to New York and worked there for a little while, and then came back to work for the firm and work with my family.

So, I got a lot of experience outside of the office and came back to work with my family. It has been a long time that we have been working together, and it is just fantastic.

It’s been wonderful to have grown up with a family that is dedicated to the law, to try to honor my grandparents and my dad in the work that we do, and to work with my brother and my sister. It is really fantastic. There are challenges to it, as a family working together, but it is wonderful to be able to go to work, and see your parents and your brother and sister, and all the other people that we work with.

Warren Pierce: Well sometimes, Beth, that can be a little too much. Certainly you, Beth Bernstein, know about families who have a hard time spending Thanksgiving together, let alone working and playing with one another 24/7. Did you think about that in the back of your mind?

Beth Bernstein: No, we have a great family relationship. Working with my family really is special. It allows this unique experience and opportunity. No, not at all, we all get along just great.

Warren Pierce: Richard, you and I have talked about how very early on, almost from birth, about you not being able to see and then going on to Northwestern University Law School. Was there any doubt in your mind that you would follow in your father’s footsteps, along with your brother and sister, and begin practicing law?

Richard Bernstein: You know what, Warren? I don’t think that I would really be equipped to do anything else.

Ultimately, I think that this is the thing that I love doing because, frankly, this is the thing that I am just the most equipped to do. What I love is that, when you work with your family, our firm is just a fun place to be.

There’s tons of energy, there’s tons of enthusiasm. It is just one of those places where there really is never a dull moment. Everyone has their passion, everyone has their purpose, and everyone kind of finds their place to do the work they love doing.

When people come to visit our firm, I think what they find is that it is just one of those places where there is never a dull moment. Lots of energy and it is really just a lot of fun. I really just enjoy going to work. I know it sounds crazy.

Warren Pierce: Dad, Sam Bernstein, when you realized that Richard would not be able to see, did you figure that he could go off, where vision is so important, going to law school, having to read all the cases? Even going to medical school, there is so much reading.

How would he succeed in law, not being able to look at all the cases and the books that you would have to go through? How much of that passed through your mind, when you discovered that he could not see?

Sam Bernstein: Well, I think part of the reason for Ricky’s success is that we never put any restrictions or whatever, never thought that there was anything he could not do -- ever. Thank God, he has been blessed with a great mind and great memory and he has always excelled at everything that he’s done.

Warren Pierce: Did you ever, Richard, say “Why me, why am I under these particular pressures, why am I in this situation making it more difficult to succeed, where others can just see what they have to do?”

Richard Bernstein: You know what, Warren? It is so funny, because I really feel working with my family, working with my brother, working with my sister, working with my dad, I really live one of the most extraordinary lives ever.

Ultimately the way at it is -- and this is why I love being a lawyer and why I really just love working with my family -- because there is no day that is ever the same. Every day is unique, every day is exciting, every day is different.

I can think of no environment where everyone in our environment is able to take on the cases, and take on the issues, that they want to take on.

So for me, I look at it and say, “You know what? It is a true consummate blessing.” I do not think that I would change a thing, because as far as I’m concerned, I get to live, and my family gets to live, a truly extraordinary life. There is no greater blessing than that and no more fun than that as well!

Warren Pierce: On this Father’s Day, we are talking to Sam Bernstein, his two sons Richard and Mark, and daughter Beth, about what this day is all about. Back to them after we head out to the WJR Big 7 Traffic Center.
. . .
Announcer: Now back to the Warren Pierce show on the Great Voice of the Great Lakes, News Talk 760 WJR.

Warren Pierce: On this Father’s Day 2008, we are talking to the very visible law firm of Sam Bernstein, who along with his two sons Richard and Mark, and daughter Beth, are all on the line.

Beth, looking back over the years, were there times that you felt as a girl growing up in the Bernstein household that your dad did not always necessarily understand what was going on in your life?

Beth Bernstein: No, not at all. I really think that he treated us all the same. Like he said regarding Richard, he always believed in us. So there really was not a gender issue at all.

Warren Pierce: There is the question, by the way, Sam, about wanting to be successful. Maybe you saw this with your dad, who started the law firm back in, I want to say, 1920, 1922, something like that.

There is always the situation where you are trying to be successful, be the bread winner, for example, such as you were out of law school in 1968. Spending so much time at the office, at the law firm, that you did not have as much time to spend at home with the kids.

Sam Bernstein: No, our family always came first and I never missed a piano recital or a ball game. I think that was always important -- family came first.

Warren Pierce: How do you do that, how do you manage both succeeding on the job and being a successful dad with three kids?

Sam Bernstein: Well, first of all, you have a good wife. The real strength is my wife Susie who, thank God, was the "mother of the Bernstein Advantage," as we call her.

Warren Pierce: Right. Mark though, was talking a bit about this earlier. There is always the concern, following in your father’s footsteps, being compared to your dad, how successful he may be, as opposed to going off on your own, trying to succeed as yourself as opposed to being, in some cases, in the shadow of your father. Did it ever run through your mind like that?

Mark Bernstein: Filling a huge shadow, you know, and they are huge shoes to fill, not just my dad’s but also my grandfather’s and my grandmother’s. But it is also a legacy that you want to continue and it is something you want to honor.

We grew up watching my dad go to work and coming home from work loving what he did, loving the clients that he worked for, loving the causes he was fighting for, and the cases that he was working on.

For me, it was both about the substance of the work and also about wanting to taste that also. Now I find myself coming home from work to my two young children. One of the things we talk about around the dinner table is “Well, who did you help today?”

Sometimes I have to do a little editing, because sometimes it is not the kind of thing you want to talk about around the dinner table with a four year old. But I am really proud of that. I feel that there is a legacy that is continuing, because we love what we do.

It is great to do it with the people that you care about and you love. So there is a shadow that you’ve got to climb out from, but it is also one that you do not necessarily want to ignore.

Sam Bernstein: Now Warren, if I could interject. You know, the greatest achievement a parent can have is to live in the shadow of their children. My three children -- I’m the proud father here -- have really taken our practice to new heights. Ricky, as you know, is quite respected throughout the state and throughout the country.

Warren Pierce: Sam, he’s getting more publicity than you are.

Sam Bernstein: I’m in the shadow.

Warren Pierce: Exactly, with the cases against the University of Michigan, he and I have talked about the problems with the Detroit buses, that they were not yielding for those that needed to have a wheelchair, to get on the buses, and it goes on and on.

Sam Bernstein: Richard this week has spoken at the commencement address for the Wayne State Medical School and the Law School. I was asked to speak at the Winterhalter Elementary’s graduation.

And Mark- I’m very proud of Bethy, Mark and Ricky for their achievements in the community. They have taken it to new heights.

Mark was a past chairman of the Michigan Civil Rights Commission, very active in the community.

Beth graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Michigan. I didn’t even get into Michigan!

So I’m living in the shadow of my kids and it’s just a pleasure.

Warren Pierce: A final question for the three children here. Beth, talking about all the law processing that goes on within the family, how competitive were you with your two brothers in this family of lawyers? Did you ever feel that?

Beth Bernstein: No, I don’t find us very competitive. I feel like we all have different areas that we excel at. We really focus on those areas at work. No, it never really has been an issue.

Warren Pierce: Mark, I would guess at some point you were looking over your shoulder, looking at what Ricky was doing or what Beth was doing. Was there any, as far as you could tell in your own mind, drive and competition within your family?

Mark Bernstein: You know, it’s funny. The only thing is my brother getting ready to compete in the Iron Man in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. I have always joked that the only thing I have ever really beaten my brother at was my marathon time. Of course, my brother being blind, it’s silly.

But there is some friendly competition. We each want to push the other to do a little bit better. It is not, in any way, a problem. I love going to the office. I love knowing what each of us are doing. Each of them, like Beth said, tend to handle different areas of the practice and it’s really a complimentary type of relationship.

Warren Pierce: Wait, Ricky, you have got to be the most competitive here, if you are in the marathons and if you are in this Ironman, then that must translate into the courtroom as well, or into offices too, I’m guessing.

Richard Bernstein: Yeah, but Warren, I am really blessed because, basically, I’m blessed to be in a family where they let me do the kind of work that I get to do. Remember, all of our work is pro bono , so it is not competitive, because my sister and brother and my dad have to work especially hard to pay for all of our cases. We do not charge fees for our representation -- we do it because it is a passion.

They are the ones who are generating the revenues that basically allow for me to do the cases that I work on. So I am blessed to have them. And the less I am in the office, the less money it costs everybody.

Warren Pierce: What were you going to say, Mark?

Mark Bernstein: I was going to say that we always joke that the pro bono department in our office is the fastest growing department.

Warren Pierce: Beth, Mark, Richard Bernstein, and dad Sam, have a great day.

Sam Bernstein: Thank you, Warren. Happy Father’s Day to you and all of your listeners.

Warren Pierce: And Ricky, what did you get Dad? Did you get him anything special for this?

Richard Bernstein: My presence.

Warren Pierce: Oh, I see -- just being there with the family.

Richard Bernstein: Sometimes you have got to go with what you’ve got.

Warren Pierce: Alright, thanks. Happy Father’s Day to one and all. At 8:35 we better make our move over to the WJR News Room.
 
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