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Support Indiana Law

Bob Lattas
Current Position:
Attorney and Counselor at Law, Law Office of Robert D. Lattas, Chicago, Illinois
Activities:
Sherman Minton Moot Court, President of Business and Law Society

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DONOR Spotlight

Working the Best Job in the World
Bob Lattas, JD’01

As a joint-degree student at Indiana Law (with an MBA in accounting), Bob Lattas planned to go into corporate law—until a bad experience at the now-defunct Arthur Andersen soured him on the corporate experience. Boosted by the confidence and skills he gained at IU, Lattas devised a new plan: opening a private practice specializing in real estate law in his native Chicago in 2001. “Being self-employed is great—it gives you the ability to make your own calendar and also motivates you to do your job well, or people aren’t going to call you. In real estate law, you’re also typically the bearer of good news. What I have is the best job in the world.”

Today, Lattas helps with fundraising efforts for the Law School and pledged $12,500 over a five-year period. He visits Bloomington twice annually to participate in the Sherman Minton Moot Court competition and the Elmore Entrepreneurship Law Clinic, and stays in touch with former classmates: “It’s nice to see my friends progress in life and do well.”

The Indiana Law experience: “People either love law school or they hate law school. I loved it. IU really helped mold me as an attorney. I could speak to professors any time I felt like it. Support from people like Professor [Emeritus Douglass] Boshkoff, Professor [Hannah] Buxbaum and the career counselors at the Office of Career and Professional Development really made me want to come back and support the school. Every day I’m looking back, using and remembering things I learned at Indiana.”

My study technique: “I studied best at the Law Library, early in the morning, and I was done by 6:30 every evening, when some of my friends were just starting to study. My advice is to do what works best for you.”

What I miss about Bloomington: “Everything. The small-town feel—I never thought I’d say that, coming from a big city—but it was an inexpensive place to live, there was a lot of energy, you could go out and have a good time. I want to retire in Bloomington.”