A Trial Lawyer Finds His Soul
One of the ways a worldview shift is becoming evident is in the increasing recognition of the importance of bringing one’s whole self to the workplace--integrating the personal inner with the business outer. Not just the mind is necessary to be successful in business, we need our hearts and souls. The hope for transformation at the organizational level where business becomes a force for good in the world is a focus area on the Institute’s Shift in Action teleseminar channel “Workplace Revolution,” facilitated by IONS Director of Communications Matthew Gilbert.
There may be no business as challenged with the intention of integrating spiritual life into the work world as the practice of law. Abundant disrespectful lawyer jokes such as “What is a Criminal Attorney?” . . . “Redundant,” reflect the inherent issue here. In his book 
Getting a Winning Verdict in My Personal Life: A Trial Lawyer Finds His Soul (Pavior 2007), Institute of Noetic Sciences Circle member J. Gary Gwilliam speaks to the need for personal and organizational change in the legal profession. The spiritual journey shared in this autobiography provides memorable insight into the life of a trial lawyer and brings light to the dark corners of law practice.
Winning Verdict tells the candid story of Gary’s many personal transformative shifts. . . from gang member to prosecutor, from staunch conservative to progressive thinker, from alcoholic to sober, from follower in his law career to leader, and from wild party guy to devoted and loving husband. In a compelling and open narrative Gary relates the trials and tribulations of his personal, social, and professional life in a manner that changes the perspective of what it takes to make a good attorney as well as a loving human being. By sharing his losses, his failed relationships, and his addiction to alcohol in a brutally honest way, his story is a testimonial of what can happen when people face the worst in themselves, and by doing that, learn how to bring forth the best. We all need such wisdom.
IONS’ 2007 Shift Report includes a section titled “Business: The Conscious Workplace,” where it says that the “evolution of the traditional business paradigm is being driven by the inside-out process of human transformation. ‘The real excitement is at the individual level,’ asserts businessman-futurist John Renesch. ‘There are lots of models, but it’s really about each of us waking up’” (p. 54).
The Institute of Noetic Sciences is a pioneer in the area of bringing heart and spirit into organizational health and we salute Circle member J. Gary Gwilliam’s inspirational work. Gary is a nationally recognized attorney who frequently lectures on quality of life issues, stress reduction, and ethics. He is the past president of the Public Justice Foundation and of the Consumer Attorneys of California. Gary has tried over 175 jury trials to verdict and was twice nominated for “Trial Lawyer of the Year.”
Getting a Winning Verdict in My Personal Life: A Trial Lawyer Finds His Soul is available through www.pavior.com.
