Thomas Valenti has been a litigator throughout his legal career on behalf of plaintiffs involved with personal injury claims or on behalf of commercial and insurance defendants. He was involved in many jury trials as well as bench trials, arbitration hearings, and mediations.
After the disaster in Haiti, Thomas teamed up with Alan Gross (a NY & PA mediator, trainer, and facilitator with world wide working experience) and Erik Kulstad, a Chicago ER doctor. The latter had just volunteered for two weeks in Haiti and sketched a pretty chaotic situation. The substantial NGO/volunteer presence working in Haiti had some apparent conflicts. So, as conflict practitioners, they met with NGO workers as they helped distribute food and medicine; built tents; and delivered supplies.
More about Thomas’ work for Haiti can be found on his blog “Just Appease me.” Thomas also tweets under the name @ValentiLaw.
For DCC, Thomas answers these seven questions:
1: what’s your most favourite part of the day?
I am an early riser and like the early mornings. I usually have some coffee, catch up on some email or check the news. Then I exercise at home. I leave for work early and like the quiet time there without other distractions.
2: what’s the worst kind of person you ever sat next to on a flight?
Recently, there was a person, who could not stop sniffling, and coughing and sneezing. It was a long flight, and was particularly bothersome.
3: were you ever in a situation where you came up short with a good come back? You can give it now!
All the time. Think you can always find a better retort later. No one in particular comes to mind now.
4: which trial/case still haunts you till today?
I represented the family of a young girl who died in an accident. The mother sat through every deposition, which was very hard on her, and added to the stress that accompanies any case. At the trial we did rather well. We obtained what was, then, one of the highest verdicts for the death of a child in Illinois. The defendant appealed and the verdict was reversed. No new trial. A straight reversal, so the family received nothing.
5: if you have a blog, how did you get started? Who or what inspired you to blog?
I do have a blog that I started to try to generate attention to my newly formed, then mediation practice. I write infrequently, so, needless to say, it has not been a huge success.
6: did you end up in the profession of your childhood dreams?
Yes, even in high school I had aspirations of being a lawyer.
7: tell us about your most embarrassing experiences in a restaurant, opening a bottle of wine, or do-it-yourself projects. Pick one and tell all!
I was in a restaurant once, where there is a self-service area. You walk along get what you want on your plate, etc. Upon returning to my table, I tripped over an electrical cord that I did not see, and of course, the plate went flying. I am certain that the other patrons did not see the cord and assumed I had been “over served!”