John F. Turck IV is a Wisconsin-born, Ann Arbor-raised husband and father of two who has had the joy of practicing his entire career in Ann Arbor. He primarily handles plaintiff’s legal malpractice cases, along with some personal injury and other matters.
Turck has spent the last 25 years (17 as an attorney) working alongside his friend and mentor, Tom Blaske, and their work together continues at Blaske & Blaske, P.L.C., in Ann Arbor, where Turck began working as a clerk in 1995.
Turck earned his undergrad degree in political science, with honors from the University of Wisconsin, and his J.D., cum laude, from the University of Wisconsin Law School.
As he was completing law school, Turck received the Wisconsin Lawyers Mutual Insurance Company award for the Top-Ranking Law Student in Professional Responsibilities (legal ethics). He has written about legal ethics and other topics for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education, and he has long served as a judge for the Michigan High School Mock Trial tournament. He also has served as a volunteer judge for the Henry M. Campbell Moot Court Competition at the University of Michigan Law School. He is a member of the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States, State Bar of Michigan, American Bar Association, Michigan Association for Justice, Washtenaw County Bar Association, and Washtenaw County Trial Lawyers Association.
Did you always know you wanted to be an attorney? No, but I got the bug in me after participating in the Michigan Center for Civic Education’s annual high school mock trial competition, for Pioneer High School.
Any interesting college story? As the 2000 University of Wisconsin Homecoming King, I had the privilege of being booed by 76,129 Wisconsin fans at Camp Randall Stadium when my hometown of Ann Arbor was announced over the PA system at halftime.
What area of the law do you like the best and why? Legal malpractice, which I have had the luck of doing for my entire career, because it allows me to continually learn about different areas of the law.
Tell us a little about your family. I have a 12-year-old daughter who is going on 15, an 8-year-old son who is going on 5 (many say I identify more with my son for that very reason), and an amazing wife, Stacy, who puts up with all three of us, plus two cats.
How are you coping during COVID-19? One of the advantages of being in a small firm (two lawyers and half a dozen support staff) is that we have been able to be fairly nimble in adapting more or less on-the-fly to COVID issues as they have arisen.
Everyone in our office is vaccinated, and everyone has remained fully employed. Adapting to Zoom is, as everyone knows, frustrating, but the time-savings it has created that otherwise would have been spent driving to and from court, depositions, and other case events have been huge, allowing me to spend more time with family, or staying home with my kids when they were attending school by Zoom from home. That said, I can’t wait to begin trying cases again.
Any words of wisdom to pass on to new lawyers? These days, work-life balance is more important than ever. Give yourself time away from work e-mail and working from home. Your family will thank you now, and you will thank yourself down the road.
What is your favorite movie or book? “The Back to the Future” trilogy.
Describe a perfect day off. I had one recently, when I took my kids to their first Badgers football game. I am not above indoctrinating my two kids as young Badgers by noting that the first play they ever saw at Camp Randall was a touchdown scored by Wisconsin.
When you have a little extra money, where do you like to spend it? This question assumes too much, and is better answered by my wife and kids.
What do you like to do in your spare time? Playing soccer and chess, but nothing makes me happier than hearing my kids laugh.
What’s the greatest gift we can give ourselves? The gift of forgiveness.
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Reprinted with permission from the Washtenaw County Bar Association newsletter, Res Ipsa Loquitur.
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