“5 things I wish someone told me when I first became an attorney” with John Benemerito Managing Partner of Benemerito Attorneys at Law

As a part of my series about “5 things I wish someone told me when I first became an attorney” I had the pleasure of interviewing John Benemerito is one of the founders and Managing Partner of Benemerito Attorneys at Law. Admitted to practice in New York and New Jersey, John represents small business owners and startups in the areas of Business and Securities Law. John received his Bachelor’s Degree at John Jay College of Criminal Justice where he majored in Criminal Justice. Afterwards, he attended New York Law School where he focused his studies on Corporate and Securities Law.

Thank you so much for joining us! What is your “backstory”?

I grew up in an Italian family from Brooklyn. All of the guys in my family worked on garbage trucks, but they were also entrepreneurs and all had a “side hustle”. I guess that is where I got the “bug” to be an entrepreneur. I had my first business at 10 years old where I sold Citizen Watches that I got from a guy in Brooklyn. At 15, I started a business with my father and ran it throughout high school, college and law school. I guess this inspired me to work with businesses and startups. Today, I am the Managing Partner of my own law firm, Benemerito Attorneys at Law, and I own four other businesses. The day I was sworn into the New York bar is the day I started the firm.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your law career?

I work primarily with startups, so every day is a new adventure. I guess a funny story was when we attempted to incorporate a business for the first time. We had to file the paperwork, which at first, it seemed pretty straightforward. The filing kept getting rejected for small details and we ended up spending a lot of time on the phone with customer service guiding us through. It was frustrating at the time, but looking back now it is funny how lost we were and how much we learned from all those newbie mistakes.

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?

To date, we have over 400 clients all over the world. We get about 10–20 new clients each month, and we are rapidly growing. We work with many different types of startups. We have helped launch some very successful businesses and helped others raise millions of dollars. We are currently in the process of closing a few Series A rounds .

What are some of the most interesting cases you have been involved in? Can you share any stories?

We are mainly a transactional law firm, so we do not handle “cases” per se. I have had clients who came to me after they sold securities in their company without complying with the law which made me have to speak with various securities bureaus to keep them out of trouble. I suppose one could find that interesting.

Which people in history inspire you the most? Why?

I’m generally not personally inspired by historic figures. I am inspired by survival stories of those who were in situations where there was no chance of survival, but they managed to beat the odds. These situations strengthen my belief that no matter what happens in life, the human will is one of the strongest things we have.

What advice would you give to someone considering a career in law?

Don’t do it…. Hahaha. Joking aside, I would advise them not to worry about the money and focus more on the clients. I know it sounds silly because you need money, but there is a reason people hate lawyers. My best advice is do not try and be a lawyer. Try and be a human being who has the ability to practice law. People will like you more.

If you had the ability to make three reforms in our judicial/legal system, which three would you start with? Why?

I believe our judicial system is broken. Litigation takes too long and costs too much money to get anything done. The average person sometimes does not have access to it because how expensive the legal process can be. I believe everyone should have more access and the process should not be so long. The current system no longer makes sense for the time we live in and the society we have become.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?

I think being a licensed attorney gives you the power and ability to help people in a meaningful way. There are clients, especially entrepreneurs who are only getting started, who have no idea what they are doing and they just need a little push to get going. I may do a favor here and there, especially if I see that a client has potential and if I don’t help them they can lose a big opportunity.

I know this is not an easy job. What drives you?

I am the type of person who thinks that if you are going to do something then you should be the best at it. I always strive to be my best, and I want to be part of something great. I always say that I am “looking for the next Facebook”. There is a quote that I like: “We all die. The idea is not to live forever, but to create something that will”. I want to help create something meaningful that will be here long after I am gone.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or an example for each.

Be patient. It took me six months to get my first client and trying to figure out how to network and get clients was one of the biggest challenges.

The money will come. My first tax return was for $710. It takes time to find your rhythm with making money.

It’s not personal, it’s business. Some cases will be frustrating and time-consuming, but you need to be able to keep it separate from your personal life.

Don’t be afraid to jump. It took me 14 months to give up business with my father to dedicate full-time to the law firm. Initially, I would work out of coffee shops, and was able to only take off on Fridays. Once I “jumped,” I was able to really scale the firm.

Take chances. Overthinking will kill you in this game. If you overthink it, you will never do it. When we had the chance to expand our office, it came with a two-year commitment. We took that chance anyway because I knew if we didn’t, the firm wouldn’t keep growing.

Some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might see this. :-)

I would like to meet with Gary Vee. A little over a year ago I was talking to a friend at a bar. Someone came up to me and said “You sound a lot like Gary Vee.” At the time, I did not know who he was. I researched him and realized that we do share a lot of ideas. Even though I disagree with him on some points, I would love the opportunity to have a conversation on what we agree and disagree on . Plus, he seems like a pretty down-to-earth guy.