tual challenges and the opportunities to help real people and real clients solve problems that can change their lives ,” Bailey says .
Bailey spends time dealing with the operation and management of the firm , including decisions about hiring good lawyers and expanding their offices . While his favorite part of the work he does is appearing in court and working on individual cases , such as the COVID- 19 hearings at the beginning of the pandemic , Bailey also enjoys deciding what cases and areas of practice they are going to develop and working with their younger lawyers to make them better at what they do .
He also spends time as a member of the advisory committee to the new West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals ; a West Virginia Bar Foundation Fellow ; and board member for the Public Justice Foundation , a national public interest firm .
His impact on the legal industry has been inspiring and promising . What started out as two lawyers and partners in 1999 has grown to 90 lawyers today , with offices across the country . The firm ’ s reputation has spread across the country due to its work on cases such as the Volkswagen emissions scandal and the Johnson & Johnson Talc bankruptcy . The firm is also well-known throughout West Virginia for its work on the mountaintop removal cases of 20
years ago and for every governor since 1999 and other high-profile businesses and individuals .
However , as a firm , Bailey believes their biggest impact has been on the lives of their clients and their businesses , which was always the goal .
“ We ’ ve been a part of their successes , which is all a lawyer can really ask . Our firm ’ s work has made it possible for me , and us , to try to make our communities better places to live and work ,” he says .
Bailey serves on the Public Justice Foundation board as well as serving as chairman of the board of Mountain State Spotlight , West Virginia ’ s nonprofit and non-partisan news source . He says this work is important to him because the organizations fill huge gaps in the public-interest legal space and the local news gathering landscape , respectively .
“ The things that keep me going are the competition and the strategy that goes into making the best case you can for your client , the art and precision of writing a convincing argument for a court , the incredible variety of the issues I get involved in and the satisfaction I get out of doing a good job for people who ’ ve put their trust in us to handle their most consequential problems ,” he says .
Through the challenges , learning opportunities and moments of growth , each experience shapes Bailey ’ s judgment .
“ All of my experiences have convinced me that you have to keep moving ahead and not spend an inordinate amount of time looking back and second guessing the decisions you made ,” he says .
Bailey still lives in Charleston today with his wife , Sarah , and their daughters . He enjoys being able to work on fascinating cases across the country , while being six minutes from the office and able to get to his kids ’ soccer games or gymnastics meets .
“ The Charleston community has been kind and generous and open to me since I first came here , and I ’ m grateful for that ,” he says . •
WWW . WVEXECUTIVE . COM SUMMER 2022 111