Stewart Martin ’77 Includes the Law School In His Future Plans

I came to the Law School with one career already behind me. Trained in the sciences and engineering, I had worked as an engineer for a few years before deciding that I wanted to expand my career choices. I thought law would open more doors and be a better fit for my personality and goals than a business degree. I felt ready for a change, but I didn’t fully appreciate the mental challenges ahead, or how the experience of law school would change my life.

In science and engineering, one solves problems with mathematical precision, and the results are predictable and repeatable. I soon learned this was not so in the law. As I read dozens of pages each night, it seemed to me the “rule of law” was more like a guideline that shifted over time or varied from court to court. There were large fuzzy areas, hidden meanings in “terms of art,” and lots of room for argument. But I did learn the way things work in the worlds of family, business, real estate, estate planning, and tax law, as well as much more. I discovered what really mattered to the parties in a case, the types of disputes that arise, and the variety of resolutions possible. That eyeopening education set the stage for a new career.

The Law School also allowed me very practical experiences in its clinic, Rule 9 intern program, Trial Practice, Moot Court competition and Board, and environmental law research. My summer of self-directed research into how local governments make decisions is still relevant nearly three decades later.

By the time I graduated I had enough knowledge and self-esteem to hang my own shingle (or so I naïvely thought). Being young and from an engineering background, I borrowed a wheelbarrow of money for one of those fancy “word processing and billing” machines, bemusing the long-established lawyers sharing the office. Gradually the referrals improved, the need for court appointments dropped away, and I focused on the areas of law that fit my personality and abilities. The opportunities to assist clients and learn from their life experiences have been invaluable.

When my wife and I recently revised our estate plan, our first concerns naturally were to provide for our daughter, any future grandchildren, and other family members. Still, although our estate is not overly large, we wanted to contribute a portion to several charities and institutions in which we were involved. I reflected on the doors my legal education had opened, all the opportunities it had created, and the satisfaction that comes from a self-made professional career. The Law School rose high on the list of organizations worthy of our support.

We are counting on having several decades of life yet ahead of us, so we designed our estate plan to be flexible. Rather than specify a dollar amount for each organization, we have set aside a percentage of our estate for donations. A portion of this will go to the Law School.

Whatever changes we might make when we next update our estate plan, Lewis & Clark Law School will remain a beneficiary. We think it is simply the right thing to do.

To find out more about planned giving and bequests, please contact the development office at 503-768-6901 or lawgive@lclark.edu.