Today we’d like to introduce you to Blair Johnson.
Hi Blair, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My father was a solo practitioner, self-taught, GI-bill out of mid-Michigan poverty. He had a strong work ethic and a passion for helping people, especially those less fortunate. I had no desire to be an attorney growing up seeing how much his work life dominated his home life, but as I struggled to find direction out of college I came back to work in the family law business and found a niche helping those applying for Social Security disability. The juxtaposition of a highly complex administrative structure designed to evaluate and award benefits to those experiencing disabling conditions, months or years without work and pay, and loss of purpose in life angered me, and I saw an opportunity to shepherd folks through a system I could understand without all the baggage they carried. The work ethic and desire to help my father demonstrated found a purpose and being raised by an attorney with a legal mindset gave me an advantage, so I cautiously proceeded in the direction of the LSAT and law school. I was discouraged in law school (not the right school, not the right students) because I found much of it impractical in the legal experience I’d already had as a paralegal. My saving grace was an opportunity to launch a homeless legal assistance project at my university based on a model created in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. I took service trips to New Orleans to help restore the legal system and recordkeeping the hurricane had destroyed, while at school helping people on the streets get benefits (like Social Security) that would help them get housing and security again. I also served on a board of an interfaith community shelter that housed homeless in church sanctuaries during the winter months. When I graduated and passed the bar, I felt lost again unsure of how to make a living doing what I had done thus far, which was without pay. I came upon an opportunity to do grassroots organizing at US colleges to raise awareness of educational persection in my faith’s country of origin, Iran. After a year of this work, I returned to my hometown in Michigan to practice with my father, this time as an attorney, and eventually found my way into family law and domestic mediation. Helping families and individuals move through a major life transition like divorce and separation provided some rewards, while operating within a legal framework that offers little towards the healing needed in these situations. I have recalled back to a meeting I had with my first-year contracts professor after 1L when I wanted to drop out of law school, disillusioned by the gap I saw in education and practice. She told me she was that I was a “counselor of law” and not an attorney or a lawyer, that the profession had moved away from its origins providing counseling to families in the legal realm and that my gift was based on a lost vocation which is why I felt alone and flailed in school. Her wisdom carried me through many troubled waters, and I reflect back frequently to my purpose to guide, counsel, shepherd rather than decide, argue, and defend in my practice. I work to help restore and renew broken lives within a system that is very much broken and overwhelmed. I’m not the right fit for every client and case, but I know when the client who is open to learning and change, who acknowledges their own faults in creating the legal trouble they find themselves in comes along, what I can help offer and inspire in them is a renewed hope in life and greater opportunities. The change in mindset is much greater than the award of certain legal rights, and the holistic process of legal counseling has a much deeper impact on a lot of people I help. Helping to break cycles of trauma, blame, resentment, and fear – especially in families with children and often generational – is a humbling experience and privilege I know is only born out of my own hard times and positive role models in my life. When I read what some of my clients have said about how I have helped them, I know that I am doing right in my practice. I try to apply these principles in all aspects of my life, at home, in community, maintaining an ethic of service keeps me grounded and grateful, a much calmer way to live. Regular meditation, nature walks, small group reflection, these practices, too, help me to maintain the boundaries necessary to stand in the middle of multiple interpersonal conflicts so that I can act with integrity rather than out of reaction and anger for perceived injustices. Getting and staying right-sized is the only way I can do what I do without burning out.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
See the earlier answer. Also, I acted out a lot as a kid, blamed my parents and my circumstances for my problems, drank and used drugs heavily to self-medicate. Owning these mistakes with the help of group recovery, skilled professionals, faith communities, and even now raising my own children, has helped me to accept that everyone has their good and bad parts, their shame and their pride, like me. I am blessed to live in a country and community that is rich with resources for personal growth and change because I couldn’t be who I am today without the helping hands and hearts of hundreds of other people in my life.
We’ve been impressed with Blair Law, PLLC, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I am beginning to shift my practice away from family law as I’ve found the volume of cases I’ve taken on and the stressors they bring have begun to challenge me at home. Our kids are 5 and 3, hard years to be a parent as little ones begin to develop their self-will. I will continue to work with families in crisis, but just not as much as before I was a parent. It’s tough because being a parent has broadened my understanding of why people go through in divorce and separation with children, but I must respect my limitations and prioritize my mental health otherwise everyone suffers, especially those I love the most. I am growing my estate planning area of practice – trusts, wills, powers of attorney – as well as probate cases like guardianships and deceased estates. This still allows me to help families in crisis and bring a sense of security and stability but without a lot of the emotional residue family cases would leave behind in my brain and on my heart. I will continue to do restorative work – helping people get their driver’s licenses back, expunging criminal records – because the work is not emotionally draining and it affords new life for those who have suffered a long time for past mistakes. I am most proud that I have learned who I am, what I can and can’t do, and that I continue to learn and iterate in my practice and business as life teaches me more. I accept that I don’t have to be or need to be all things to all people or to “help everyone,” as I once felt. I think who I am in practice and business is who I am at home, with friends, with family, in my community, and this consistency and integrity keeps me free enough and available to help others when needs arise. The symbol of my brand is the flying red-crowned crane. I designed my logo and picked this image because I’m a redhead (for one), wading birds, particularly large ones are my favorite because of how graceful and elegant and faithful they are (mates for life) and flying is the greatest symbol of freedom I can imagine, the freedom I strive to help my clients experience even to a small degree.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Integrity. I’m not perfect, very far from it. I continue to lie, hide, rationalize, and defend wrong behavior at times. I can lose my temper, anger comes out sideways sometimes. But I try and own my experience and admit my faults and atone for my harms quickly because I am better, other people are better, the world is a little bit better when I do. Shame is a corrosive and toxic emotion, handed down for generations, and responsible in my humble opinion for much of the damage in the world. Misunderstanding this emotion only deepens the wounds, and the healing begins at home and within me. If I can be ride of shame by acting with integrity, then my children may hopefully be free of shame, they and I will engage with others free of shame, and slowly the circles around us may expand by example. Forgiveness, grace, humility, patience, all of these virtues spring from integrity, and acting with integrity mitigates the transmission of fear, which opens the door for shame to flood in. I know I’m all over the place here on an article intended to be about business professionals or community members, but the truth is everything is relational. Everything is about relationships, one-on-one, and these relationship all begin with the interpersonal harmony with and understanding of the individual in the relationship.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://blairjohnson.law
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/askblairjohnson
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/askblairjohnson
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/blmjohns
