Baltimore partner Mike Brown went from being one of the few black lawyers in litigation to a powerhouse partner leading a diverse team that regularly handles, with success, high-stakes cases in challenging venues. Legal guides Chambers USA, Legal 500, Benchmark Litigation, and LMG Life Sciences have recognized Mike for his litigation and trial work, and in 2018 he was named a Most Influential Black Lawyer by Savoy Magazine.

Super Lawyers magazine noted that the Baltimore where Mike practices today is a city where a young Thurgood Marshall “would debate issues of the day with his father.” The Thomson Reuters publication says Mike is part of a generation of African-American lawyers who “helped define, shape, grow, and evolve the area’s post-civil rights era black legal community.”

In an interview with Super Lawyers, reprinted below, Mike gives insights on the evolution of his career and his community.

Getting In

When I first joined a firm in 1989, after law school, there were very few black partners. In fact, there was just one in a firm of 250 lawyers, and he was a corporate lawyer. I was in litigation, so there were no examples in my firm of how a black lawyer in litigation could make partner, which is one of the reasons the few black lawyers that the firm did have found it difficult to stay. Things have improved since those days, but back then, there were few — if any — roadmaps to follow.

I once talked my way into a meet-and-greet with Royal Insurance Company, where I met a gentleman who worked there named Eric White. We were the only two black men there. So we started talking, became friends, and before you knew it, I was getting clients on my own.

Looking Around

It is inevitable that you are going to run into obstacles as a black lawyer, whether because of the nature of the business or, in some circumstances, because of your skin color. As my father always said, ‘When someone does you wrong, you have two options: one, quit, shrink away and fail; or, two, use that disappointment as fuel and fight harder, and prove those folks wrong.’ I always choose option B. No one gets to determine my failure or success but me. You gotta keep your faith and keep pushing forward, no matter what.

State of the Union

What I’ve seen in Baltimore is black partners in the big firms or black business owners who are committed to helping young black lawyers out. When I was first coming up, I didn’t know many black partners. Today, there are so many good, strong black partners in firms in Baltimore compared to when I was coming in.

The younger generation, they’re smarter. No question. Intellectually smarter. The young lawyers we see are so capable. They are fearless.

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