In this short interview I had the pleasure of speaking with Joe, founder of The Ginarte Law Firm. I had the opportunity to ask him a few questions about the start of our firm, the journey it’s been, and where he sees the firm going in the future. Many of us have worked closely with Joe and understand how busy he can be, in this interview alone he had three quick calls to make in between. There’s no time off it seems when it comes to Joe, but this only shows us the devotion and value that he has for our firm.
We currently have 7 offices, can you take me back to where it all started?
We opened our very first office October 1, 1982 in downtown Newark. At the time it was just a part-time paralegal and myself. I am proud to say that in 35 years I’ve only had two personal assistants. Cathy Palma, who has been with me for the last 20 years and more recently, Ingrid Santana came on board.
How did you decide on those locations?
Our expansion has always been driven by the needs of our clients. Our first branch office was in Elizabeth, followed by Union City and the Clifton and Perth Amboy. In 1994 we opened our New York office. At the time, it was just one lawyer and one paralegal, and now I am proud to say we have over 60 employees in New York. We also opened an office in Queens about five years ago and we have already outgrown that space. We have always paid attention to the working class and immigrant community that we serve. A community that is disenfranchised, where many people do not have legal services readily available.
Many people know our firm by our commercials, is that how you always marketed the firm?
The primary way of marketing our law firm has always been to do excellent work for our clients, and in return having them recommend their family and friends. Our TV commercials have been a great way to get the word out to a larger segment of our community. Nowadays we rely on both TV and digital media to reach a wider audience.
Where do you see the firm in the next 5-10 years?
Just nine years ago, the firm employs eight attorneys. Today I am proud to say that we have 33 attorneys (and growing) and over a hundred and twenty-five paralegals, investigators, secretaries, and legal assistants. So of course I think we will continue to grow, but any future expansion will be dictated by the needs of our clients. We are months away from celebrating the grand opening of our expanded headquarters in Newark with over 60,000 square feet of space, with state of the art technology including a beautiful courtroom which we will use for preparing our clients for trials and depositions. In addition, we are currently working on plans to relocate our New York office to larger quarters.
What is one thing you wish you knew before you started the law firm? What advice would you have for someone starting in this profession?
That’s an interesting question, because I always knew I wanted to be a lawyer. I started the law firm three months after passing the bar exam, so I don’t know if I would have done anything differently. We’ve been very successful doing things the right way. I think any mistakes made by a young professional is just part of growing up and maturing. Most important is to persevere and to learn from your mistakes.
It seems like you’re always on the clock. What is a typical work day for you?
That’s top secret! I’m a workaholic. If I’m awake, I’m working. I work from home; I work on weekends; if I’m on vacation, I hide my iPhone and tell my wife I’m going to Starbucks, but I’m actually answering emails. I think if I start counting the hours I will probably go nuts, but I love what I do. For me, it’s a labor of love.
One last thing: What is your favorite quote to live by?
My favorite quote is: “if this were easy, everyone would be doing it,” because what we do is not easy. We’re dealing with clients who are in crisis mode, and we are constantly trying to help people who are going through a very difficult time. We are part-time social workers, part-time psychologists, so we wear many different hats in this profession. This is challenging work, but extremely rewarding. We actually make a difference in every day in people’s lives.
We do our job with a lot of compassion and a lot of love for our clients. And I know that I speak for all our attorneys and staff when I say that we are truly blessed to do very satisfying, rewarding work. God willing we will continue to represent our working class, immigrant clients for years to come
I am so thankful to work alongside dedicated professionals, both attorneys and staff, who do a terrific job day in and day out. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
NY & NJ Attorneys
If you have been injured in a New York car, pedestrian or bicycle accident, you could be entitled to compensation. Contact the New York/New Jersey accident and injury attorneys at Ginarte Gonzalez & Winograd to find out what legal options you may have. With seven offices conveniently located in the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area, we have an office near you. Contact the firm today by calling 888-446-2783 for your free consultation or fill out our online contact form.