What's In a Name?

"That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet"
Over the weekend an old friend announced that his wife was having a baby and they were having trouble picking out a name. Name your kid Wellington or Bradford and surely he will turn out well to do. Name your kid Bambi and you risk a future in exotic dancing.  As someone who shares a name with a popular movie character, I understand how a name can impact your life.  Imagine growing up named Adrian during the height of Rocky popularity.  I wish I had a nickel for every "Yo Adrian" I heard throughout my life.  I even had a judge do it to me in open court. Suffice to say, I became a lawyer in order to get an injunction against Sylvester Stallone.  No more Rocky movies.  But I digress..... Here is an update on a popular post we did some time ago.

Some of our bar colleagues seemed destined for a career in law. With a last name like Justice or Law, you are pretty much destined to follow a path in law enforcement or practice. At least that was the path taken by Pasadena Lawyer Yuk Kwong Law who goes by Chuck Law, Newport Beach Tax Attorney Zeb Law and New York's Dare Law. Sherman Oaks attorney Yor Law might find competition with New York's Mee Law. Houston's Dick Law practices medical malpractice. And how could you not hire Seattle's Moni Law or Floridas Joe Justice. Can you have a cooler lawyer name than that? And how could Indiana's Joe Good or Newport Beach's Jack Smart and California's Steve Super be bad? You can have an Attorney Durney in California and a Lawyer Moyer in Illinois. Hurt in an accident. You may want to hire North Carolinas Sue Hurt. If you are particularly litigious try out Florida's Sue More.


Law Students might enjoy California's Harry Hand or New York's John Tort. Like 80s music? San Antonio has a Michael Jackson, Illinois has a Ben Wham, New York has a Madonna Stahl, Texas has a Phil Collins and there is a Duran & Duran Law office in Los Angeles.


Television can also give your career a boost. How can you not trust a lawyer named "Matlock" There's one in Tennesee. There's an Attorney Denny Crane in California and an Attorney Perry Mason Raymond in Louisiana. We assume the added Raymond was in tribute to actor Raymond Burr. We found several Harry Stones, but could not determine if any were judges in Night Court as well as Dan Fielding and Christine Sullivan. Fans of the Practice can find solace in the fact that there are real Bobby Donnels out there as well as Will Trumans of Will & Grace. And let's not forget about Florida's Jack McCoy putting in some Law and Order in the sunshine state.


New York's Napolean Bonaparte Williams and Minnesota's Myer Shark might be tough adversaries. Doylestown's George Bush, New Jersey's John F Kennedy and Washington's antitrust attorney Wiliam J Clinton might give them a run for their money alongside Temecula attorney Richard Nixon, Texas Attorney George Washington and New Jersey's Gerald Ford.


Of course, there are unfortunate real lawyer names. Neil Charles Manson practices in Ohio, while Clyde Killer is in Florida with Penny Crook. We have Lockport's Attorney Stole, Californa's Attorney Lie , New York's Attorney Fink, Massachusett's Attorney Dollar and Pennslyvania's Attorney Swindler. Lest we forget the unfortunately named Richmond Falls Attorney Dick Focht, California's Harry Johnson and New York's Dick Hole and Chuck Suck. If your a parent. Word of advice. Practice some childish rhyming taunts of your kid's name before you bestow it upon them.

My favorite attorney name has to be Luke Skywalker. According to Avvo.com listings there is one listed in Michigan and one in Ohio. There is no Darth Vader, but you do have a Dana Vader in Virginia, a Steven Yoda in LA and a Gordon Solo in Minnesota. We also have a James Kirk in New Jersey and a Susan Spock in Massachusetts.