I know what you are thinking, “what? I hate lawyers, what do you mean, lawyers are good people?” Well, they are.
I am just returning from the Western trial lawyers association convention in Park City, Utah. I sponsor this convention because it’s a great way to market Heidi Hemmat Productions. As many of you already know, when I left my investigative reporter position at KDVR/KWGN, I started my own business–producing documentaries about severely injured people that help settle their legal cases out of court.
When I attend these conventions, I often listen to the lawyer’s presentations. If you hate lawyers, you probably assume the attorneys are talking about their biggest cases, the ones where they made the most money. So, you might be surprised to learn, most often, they are talking about the cases they took on because it was the right thing to do–cases about old people abused in nursing homes (usually–no money in that), or little kids molested by catholic priests–(hard to believe, but there’s no money in that either). I listen to their stories with awe and amazement, especially when I see grown men, tough attorneys, choking back the tears. Many of their presentations make me want to cry because, I too, have spent most of my life looking into the eyes of people who have been through enormous pain. I’ve cried with them, I cry afterwards, sometimes I think about them in the middle of the night. I never, ever forget them. I pray for them and everyday I thank God–that there but for the grace of God go I.
So trust me when I say, lawyers are good people. Yes, there are jerks in every profession. A lot of people hate reporters too, but when I think about all the good I was able to do for people by simply telling their stories with compassion and empathy–I know I was helping people. Now I feel like I am doing my life’s work–because the people I do documentaries about–their stories aren’t “newsworthy” but what happened to them is every bit as bad and many of them live in a private hell–unable to even tell their own stories. Those people need me, and they need their lawyers, especially the ones who aren’t afraid to cry.
