Joshua K. Martin, P.L. - Attorney / Founder of Private Law Firm

So you own a small business in the Fernandina or Nassau County areas of Florida and you need a lawyer...Or you're a student trying to decide whether or not to take your LSAT's and enter law school.In either case, I'd suggest that you read this interview of Attorney Joshua Martin, who moved to Amelia Island in order to help small businesses with their legal needs...and to be close to the beach.

And while it may seem that nothing interesting could possibly come out of the mouth of an Attorney at law...because those all of those on commercials on TV are sooo interesting...I promise that Josh has a lot more to offer than the title of this article may suggest. (ie Study Abroad) So read up and learn what you may!

GOTB      How do you define Success?  -   

Josh -  Success is the peace of mind I get from knowing that I have done something remarkable with my life in light of the talents and capabilities I am blessed with.  It means something more than the minimum I can do, but something less than all I could do.  Success doesn’t have to involve money, accolades, titles, or even recognition by other people, but I believe that all successful people are driven by a little voice in their minds that tells them “you can do better than this.”

GOTB   How do you define Leadership?  

Josh -  Leadership is the combination of two things:  (1) the ability to make decisions in a careful, wise, and timely fashion and (2) the ability to communicate those decisions to others in a way that causes the others to effectively implement the decision made.

GOTB    What exactly do you do? and What Service/Product do you/your company provide? 

Josh -  As an attorney in solo private practice, I use my knowledge of the law and the business world to help individuals and organizations solve problems.  Sometimes those problems are litigation (lawsuits), sometimes they are transactions, and sometimes they are just a need for wise outside advice.  In general, my law practice involves real estate (particularly condominium associations and community associations), civil litigation, and probate matters.

GOTB      How long have you been doing this?  

Josh -  I started my law practice in September 2009 after passing the Florida Bar Exam.

GOTB      What does a typical day look like for you? 

Josh -  There are no typical days in law practice.  No two matters are alike because no two people or organizations are alike.  Some days I spend hours reading legal opinions written by judges, laws written by legislators, and books about those things written by law professors.  Other days, I have to go to court and argue for what my client wants in front of a judge.  In the end, every day is spent (1) figuring out what the law requires and (2) figuring out the best way to make my client’s wishes fit with the law. 

GOTB     How important is Goal Setting and Leadership in your field? 

Josh -  Goal setting and leadership are the two things a lawyer does in representing a client.  I have to learn what the client wants (what his/her goal is), and then I have to lead the client toward those goals.  In a criminal case, for example, I first have to learn what the client’s goal is—whether that means avoiding jail time, proving his innocence, etc.  Then I have to learn the facts and the law relevant to the case and help the client make the decisions that will get him closest to his goal (that’s leadership, in my opinion).

GOTB      What is your formal educational background? 

Josh - Georgia College & State University – Bachelor of Business Administration in Management and General Business

Mercer University, Walter F. George School of Law – Juris Doctor

However, I believe that I learn more each day in “real life” than I did in seven years of formal higher education.  In academia there are no consequences beyond grades, and the importance of the information you study is not necessarily clear.  In the business world, there are real consequences to actions—financial, moral, legal, etc.  By teaching myself all that I can about anything I work on, I make sure that the results of my work are better for me and for people around me.

GOTB      Did your formal education prepare you for this career? 

Josh -  In some respects, law school is a great education in the way that lawyers think about problems, and it is a wonderful three-year mental exercise.  However, it does not in any other way prepare you for law practice.  To draw an analogy, you can read the rules of baseball, but all you’ll know is that you’re out if you get three strikes.  There is no book that can teach you to swing a bat, though.  You have to pick one up and practice. 

GOTB      What other education/Internships helped prepare you for your current career?  

Josh -  Law school is extremely time-consuming; a good law student works 60-80 hours every week.  Most law students spend most of their time with fellow students, and it is hard to not become isolated from outside society during those three years.  However, I participated in a study-abroad program during the summer following my first year of law school that helped me escape from that closed environment, and it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had.  I spent two weeks in The Hague, The Netherlands and two weeks in Freiburg, Germany.  I had classes in international criminal law, the law of armed conflict, international human rights law, and the death penalty.  None of these topics has much relevance to the work I do now, but the experience was great.  I met people from other law schools, which allowed me to develop a wider network of contacts and learn a little about the culture of other schools.  Plus, I got to know some of my own classmates in a different environment.  I had to fend for myself in a foreign land and I had to learn to communicate with people who have a different native language (this is harder than you think).  Most importantly, I learned the golden rule of study abroad programs:  it’s always a bit more “abroad” than “study” and that’s why it’s fun!

GOTB     What is the BEST part about what you do? 

Josh -  Hard to say.  I live in paradise (Amelia Island, Florida) and I set my own schedule.  Take your pick; both are awesome.

GOTB     What could you live without, with regards to your job/career?   

Josh - I could live without the common misconception that legal cases can be resolved by “technicalities.”  Almost every day, I see someone who has found a few words in a statute that seem to support this position or that and who has concluded “Aha!  I win!”  It’s almost never like that.  Most, rarely understand that “the law” is a lot more than what a single statute says.  There is usually case law—or decisions in previous cases—that matters more than what a sentence in the state statutes says.

GOTB   When did you know that this was your life’s calling? 

Josh  -  I don’t know that it is; one day while I was in law school, I was thinking about how miserable it would be to live in a big dirty city and have to commute into downtown every day to work in a skyscraper.  I thought about it a while, and concluded that living at the beach would be much better.  Because I was already in law school, I figured I’d go ahead and try to practice law at the beach.  It’s worked out well, but I think my calling might be something else that I’m not aware of just yet.

GOTB   What’s the best advice you’ve ever received? 

Josh  -  Don’t Panic.  It’s the slogan printed on the cover of the fictional “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” in Douglas Adams’s series of comedy/sci-fi novels.  Keep a level head; no matter what happens, the world will keep on spinning and the sun will come up tomorrow.  Even if that fails to happen, panicking won’t save you.

GOTB   What is one thing you wish you had known before entering into your field about it or life in general? 

Josh - I wish I had known that there would be a lengthy and deep economic recession.

GOTB    If you could offer any other advice to teens wanting to do what you do, what words would you leave them with? 

Josh -  Higher education is not difficult unless you make it so.  Take it easy, read what you’re told to read, and learn what you’re told to learn, and life will be happier and easier. 

See? Interesting, just like I said :-). In any case to learn more about this Legal Mind, visit his website and/ or follow him on Twitter 

If you are actually a small business owner looking for good representation in the Nassau or Fernandina Counties of Florida, then you can contact him by mail, phone or email here:

Law Office of Joshua K. Martin, P.L.

960185 Gateway Boulevard, Suite 104

Fernandina Beach, Florida  32034

904-432-8333

jmartin@fernandinalaw.com