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Gonzalez attorney Ruiz takes nothing for granted

By: JESSICA STEPHEN//January 11, 2013//

Gonzalez attorney Ruiz takes nothing for granted

By: JESSICA STEPHEN//January 11, 2013//

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Anique Ruiz (Staff photo by Kevin Harnack)

From where she started – moving more often than not around the inner city of Milwaukee, even spending time in a shelter – Anique Ruiz never expected to end up an e-discovery attorney and law student mentor.

But then, Ruiz’s mother never expected to drop out of college after Ruiz was born, work two jobs to support her and her sister and, in the process, set an example that paved the path for Ruiz’s career.

“That’s what really made the difference,” said Ruiz, an associate attorney with Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan LLP, Milwaukee. “She taught me how to persevere, how to work hard, how to not give up on your dreams.

“And now, from where I was in middle school – I was getting into all kinds of trouble – you wouldn’t even recognize me.”

Ruiz earned a master’s degree in political science and was working as a student lobbyist and an intern for Sen. Russ Feingold when her mother threw her a curveball by suggesting Ruiz become a judge.

Though she was surprised, Ruiz said she quickly realized a legal career wasn’t so far-fetched.

“Advocacy is the same no matter where you go,” she said.

Law school wasn’t easy – Ruiz was going through a divorce and raising two toddlers – but she finished in 2010 and took on a year-long internship with the trial division of the Milwaukee County Public Defender’s Office.

Today, she is a commercial litigator, defending Fortune 500 companies and banks primarily on matters of e-discovery.

“I look back and it’s kind of amazing,” Ruiz said.

The struggle to get here is part of the reason, Ruiz said, she is so committed to giving back. She is a student mentor and was elected in 2012 as District Two representative on the Wisconsin State Bar Board of Governors.

“Service is part of an attorney’s responsibility,” Ruiz said. “It’s part of what’s owed as part of the privilege that is given to us being lawyers. Everything that I do and have done is with that goal in mind: to serve. It’s just a given.”

Wisconsin Law Journal: What is the best part of being an attorney?
Anique Ruiz: Helping people navigate difficult situations. I defend corporations and Fortune 500 clients, but behind the corporate persona, they’re people like you and me with fears and concerns. To be able to help them – it’s a blessing and a privilege. I don’t take that lightly.

WLJ: What do you consider your biggest achievement so far?
Ruiz: My children, Jeremiah and Elijah. Everything else pales in comparison to them.

WLJ: What object in your office means the most to you?
Ruiz: I have several cards in my office from law students and undergraduate students thanking me for helping them and mentoring them. And that means the most to me.

WLJ: Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Ruiz: The word ‘basically.’ I use it a lot. When I was in law school I had a torts professor (and) when we were learning Socratic method I guess I must have said it several times because he called me out. ‘Are you going to say ‘basically’ again?’ I was embarrassed, so I hear his voice in my mind.

WLJ: What was your most useful law school course?
Ruiz: I would say legal writing and appellate advocacy, because they really honed my writing skills.

WLJ: What was your least favorite course in law school?
Ruiz: Trust and estates. I could tell right off the bat, I just didn’t connect with the subject.

WLJ: If you could develop one CLE course for credit, what would it be about?
Ruiz: I would say Practice Basics 101 to train lawyers on billing practices, client relationships and how to navigate the first few years of practice. There’s so much you don’t learn in law school. And with the economy the way it is and the market being so saturated, so many attorneys are going on their own. You need to know how to bill. And you don’t learn that, and then you’re making mistakes. So, practical skills, not the theoretical things – that’s what I would develop a course for credit on.

WLJ: What word in the English language do you wish you had invented?
Ruiz: Tweet. I might be rich right now if I developed that word.

WLJ: What is your greatest extravagance?
Ruiz: Purses. I love designer bags.

WLJ: Finish this sentence: Happiness is …
Ruiz: Doing what you love with who you love.

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