The personal injury law firm established in Red Bank by Louis Drazin more than 70 years ago is now in its third generation. From left to right, Ronald S. Drazin, Justin L. Drazin, Brian. D Drazin, and Dennis A. Drazin.
Photo courtesy of Drazin and Warshaw
By Eileen Moon
RED BANK – When Brian Drazin was a young attorney newly in practice with his father, renowned trial attorney Louis Drazin, he took special satisfaction in being able to return from a hard-won court battle and tell his father that he had succeeded in getting a just verdict for his client.
These days, he’s enjoying seeing that experience come full circle.
This past September, Brian’s son Justin joined his father and uncles, Dennis and Ronald, in the family law firm on Reckless Place.
During more than 70 years in business, the firm now known as Drazin and Warshaw has earned a formidable reputation for its advocacy on behalf of clients who have suffered personal injury from medical malpractice or other damaging circumstances.
The firm has won a multitude of individual verdicts as high as $30 million for clients who have turned to it for help after suffering a devastating tragedy.
While new to the firm, Justin’s education in the legal profession began virtually in the cradle. He grew up learning about the law and its importance to his family and community from his grandfather, father and uncles.
“My father brought his work home,” he said. “He’s not a 9-to-5 person. None of us are.”
Although he always believed he would someday become a lawyer, Justin’s path to the legal profession was a circuitous one.
Like many kids who grow up in the Two River area, Justin developed a love for the river and ocean and an interest in the natural world.
He followed that passion to the University of Miami, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in ecosystem science and policy and a Bachelor of Science in communications studies.
He continued his education at Columbia University, where he earned a master’s degree in sustainability management.
Justin began working for an entrepreneurial real estate development firm focused on building sustainable spaces. “It was a very hot topic at the time,” Justin said. But when the business model changed, he decided that the time was right to pursue his law degree.
After graduating from Benjamin J. Cardozo Law School in New York City, he went to work for a large corporate law firm in the city. “You get in the elevator and you go to the 16th floor,” he said. He soon realized that corporate law wasn’t a good fit. He had grown up seeing how the practice of law could make a difference in people’s lives.
“Growing up around my father and uncles, seeing what they did, it just seemed to be a much more fulfilling career, a way to help people. This is a much more exciting practice of law, in my opinion.”
Today, he occupies an office in a converted house at 29 Reckless Place, next door to the tall brick building that his grandfather built for a firm that now employs some 70 attorneys and legal support staff.
“I was so fond of my grandfather,” Justin said. “He left quite a legacy. There’s a piece of him that’s a part of me.”
For Justin’s father Brian, having his son join the firm provides an opportunity for him to experience the pride and satisfaction that he saw his own father take in him.
“I get another bite of the apple,” said Brian. “There’s no higher compliment for a mother or father than when your child comes into the same profession,” he said.
“It’s been an absolute pleasure to come here,” said Justin, who is expecting his first child with his wife Andrea in the next few weeks. “I have such a good relationship with my father and uncles. In 20 or 30 years when I look back, it will be one of the decisions that I cherish most.”
