BAEC Bulletin | New Year 2022 | 7
A Conversation with Garry Graber
There are many famous quotes, wise (and unwise) words, and theories about “retirement”. People we know and love will disagree about the pros and cons of retirement and how to live in retirement. Often the question is whether to retire at all. What perhaps we can all agree on is that retirement is indeed a significant transition for many professionals, especially lawyers. The editors of The Bulletin thought it would be nice to hear from one of our bar leaders about his decision to retire and share a look back on his career. Our recent interview with Garry Graber is below. Garry Graber is a past BAEC President as well as a past President of the Erie County Bar Foundation. We wish him all the best in his retirement! If you or a colleague have retirement plans that you want to share with us, please let us know. As we say, we are better together facing life’s challenges and transitions. The BAEC is here to keep you connected. Why did you become a lawyer? My father, who was in law enforcement, always encouraged me to go to law school. He observed that I would frequently argue with him and thus thought that I would make a great lawyer. What lawyer has influenced you most? That’s an easy one. It was Bill Gardner, my colleague and mentor at Hodgson Russ. In fact, he hired me. I met Bill at the end of 1979, shortly after enactment of the new Bankruptcy Code in 1978. Bill is the smartest, most compassionate, and well-spoken lawyer I have ever met. Working with him was always an experience. He also did incredible work fighting for the gay community and achieved a major victory on its behalf at the U.S. Supreme Court. At Hodgson Russ, Bill served as the “firm’s lawyer,” handling errors and omissions, malpractice, and related issues. At Hodgson Russ, that role is reserved for the smartest of attorneys. How long have you been practicing? I graduated from UB Law School in 1978. I started with a smaller firm as a real estate lawyer. It was also in 1978 that the new Bankruptcy Code was substantially modernized and made more accessible to troubled businesses and individuals. By 1980, the new Bankruptcy Code was being put to substantial use and law firms were realizing that a virtually new practice area was developing and that additional attorneys would be needed in that arena. Hodgson Russ offered me a position. I accepted and spent
GARRY GRABER Past President, BAEC, 2000-2001
the rest of my practice primarily representing troubled businesses, their creditors, owners and other parties in interest. What involvement did you have in the legal community outside of the courtroom and what was the most meaningful to you? I have been very fortunate to have had several opportunities to be involved in not-for-profit organizations related to the practice of law. Perhaps most significantly, I had the great honor of being elected as Treasurer and then President of the Bar Association of Erie County following my tenures as Treasurer and President of the ECBA Volunteer Lawyers Project. In addition, I served as a director and then as the President of the Erie County Bar Foundation, sat for several years on the Board of the Center for Elder Law & Justice, had the opportunity to stay involved with UB Law School, and served as President of the UB Law Alumni Association. I have also served as an adjunct faculty member at the Law School, teaching bankruptcy law and related commercial courses. I am presently a member of the on the Dean’s Advisory Committee. Additionally, I was able for several years to endow a UB Law scholarship that funded clerkships for law students with the Volunteer Lawyers Project and the Center for Elder Law and Justice. I have also been a longstanding board member, and have served as Chair, of the Upstate New York Turnaround Management Association and a member of the Insolvency Committee of the Ontario Bar Association.
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