Jim Rosenbloom – 50th Reunion Essay

Jim Rosenbloom

835 Greenwood Avenue

Glencoe, IL 60022

james.rosenbloom@goldbergkohn.com

312-523-4946

Spouse(s): Linda (married July 7, 1970)

Child(ren): Jessica (born July 7, 1977); Kate (born August 29, 1979)

Grandchild(ren): Jillian, 2011, Andrew, 2013, Jeanette, 2014, Tommy, 2015

Education: University of Chicago Law School, 1972, JurismDoctor

Career: One of four founders of Goldberg Kohn Ltd, Attorneys at Law, April, 1976

Avocations: Portrait painting

College: Calhoun (Hopper)

I’m having some reservations about writing a personal essay. Why? First of all, because the audience will consist of, for the most part, total strangers. My circle of friends and acquaintances while at Yale was not that large, less than 15 percent of the class, if I had to guess. In addition, regrettably, my connection with Yale and all but a few of my classmates has diminished over the years, although my gratitude for and pride in being a part of the Yale family and tradition has not. Second, my thoughts about the role of Yale in, and the last 50 years of, my life will be of little or no interest to most of you, and, at best, inform the modest curiosity of the few of you who actually remember who I am. That said, below is what I offer on the topic in less than 500 words:

I have always felt that an opportunity to get a Yale education and the sense of personal accomplishment derived from it have served me well throughout my professional life. In my experience, most people make positive assumptions about the intelligence and capabilities of Yale graduates, assumptions that provide a competitive advantage, so to speak. At least in my case, the Yale “pedigree” has also been a source of personal pride and confidence. However, I have to admit that my lack of effort to maintain my Yale connections is something I regret. By way of explanation, and not as an excuse, I was distracted by a few things, like my wonderful family and my 46-year career as a lawyer (which currently continues), 42 of which have been at the firm I founded with three other guys in 1976 and has grown to 85 lawyers, and 22 of which included a stint as a lecturer in law at the University of Chicago Law School.

I would say I have been more lucky than good: great marriage, two beautiful daughters and four fantastic grandchildren, professional colleagues of the highest degree of integrity and professional quality. Not necessarily interesting or exciting to any of you, but enormously satisfying and fulfilling to me.

What’s next? Retirement (not sure when, trying to slow down but hard to let go), more portrait painting (took it up two years ago), more time in Southern California during the miserable Chicago winters (we have a second home in Palm Desert) and some travel (as I write this I am in South Africa at a safari camp).

There it is, for whatever it’s worth to those of you who took the time to read it.