Personalities of Pittsburgh: Blank Rome's James Barnes Leads a Law Office for the Second Time
A year after joining Blank Rome LLP’s Pittsburgh office in early 2017, James Barnes took the helm as administrative partner, marking the second downtown law office he’s led, a rare achievement in this market. The other was Reed Smith LLP, the region’s largest. Barnes built his career at larger firms long-established in Pittsburgh. Since Philadelphia-based Blank Rome entered this market four years ago, he gets to do something new — build. He talked about his practice’s evolution, how law was his fall back to joining the NBA, and the challenges of leading an office and practicing law simultaneously.
What haven’t you accomplished professionally that you want to achieve?
What I have not done is what I’m doing now. I’ve not had the opportunity to lead my colleagues in a growth environment, a smaller firm with substantial aspiration to build its brand in a market. I’ve led a larger office with a well-developed brand. Blank Rome has established its brand in other markets around the country, but it’s still building in Pittsburgh.
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What’s the hardest thing about being a practicing lawyer and leading an office?
Being able to compartmentalize those two roles. When my clients need me to address legal matters, they aren’t concerned about issues I face as the leader of an office, and when my colleagues need me to run the office, they’re not too concerned about what my clients need at that particular time. It’s about balancing and prioritizing and having the ability to give each of them your full focus at the appropriate time.
"Personalities of Pittsburgh: Blank Rome's James Barnes Leads a Law Office for the Second Time," by Patty Tascarella was published in Pittsburgh Business Times on January 7, 2019.