~ Ward Merdes
My father, Ed Merdes, was a gentleman and brilliant trial lawyer. He cared about God, he cared about Alaska and he cared about injured people. One summer afternoon in 1982, after dad had practiced law in Alaska for 30 years, we were sitting in dad’s office – talking about nothing in particular. The room was warm and quiet. Dad was behind his desk and I was sitting in front. It smelled of old law books. Dad was working, looking down while reading another attorney’s legal brief.
Dad grimaced , turning the pages. Looking disgusted, his lips parted while he slowly shook his head side to side. Still reading the brief, his grimace turned to a frown and his brow furled. He then lowered his pen, took off his glasses and looked up…
That’s when dad told me not to become a lawyer.
“Ward, do anything but go to law school. The world already has too many lawyers. What’s more, its full of the wrong kind of lawyers. It’s full of lawyers who stir up trouble. It’s full of lawyers filing stupid lawsuits and advancing ridiculous defenses. It’s full of lawyers trying harder to line their own pockets than help decent people. No wonder people hate lawyers. The legal profession has become a sorry thing indeed.”
In some ways, it was clear that dad was right. While working with dad through college, it became increasingly clear that many lawyers deserved their sorry reputation. Many lawyers had lost sight, abandoning their moral compasses. Many ignored what is really important: Helping people in need. What had once been a noble and honorable profession had indeed sunk to incredible depths.
On the other hand, there was dad. He cared. He did what was right. He had a very clear moral compass.
Long story short, I went to law school anyway – and loved it. I became a lawyer exactly because of what dad said in 1982. While there are too many lawyers treading the wrong path, I vowed to become a good lawyer. I vowed to do what is right, to care. I run a law practice that helps people in need. We are honest and we work hard. We tackle problems that overtake decent people out of the clear blue sky … and we fight to make their lives better. Dad died suddenly in 1991. I wish he was with us today. He’d be proud of what we do.
We present claims for injured clients. We get their medical bills and lost wages paid. We don’t ask for a dime more than we’re entitled to – and we don’t accept a dime less. We defend the innocent. We take our profession – our clients – and ourselves seriously. We level the playing field for broken and injured people who would otherwise be crushed by massive insurance companies. We know that helping people work their way through bad times usually means more than just fighting through lawsuits. It means helping people heal in many ways.
Alaska is my home. I was born and raised here. My family lives here. Merdes Law Office makes Alaska a better place.
