Flint native named legal director

By Paul Janczewski
Legal News

Michael F. Gadola never planned for his career to unfold like this. But how could a Catholic kid from Flint with an interest in politics look into the future and see himself as the legal affairs director to Gov. Rick Snyder?

“I’m not one of those people who had a 10-year plan, or a five-year plan, or even a one-year plan,” Gadola said. “It was just, ’What’s next?’”

It wasn’t like Gadola, 49, was ho-hum about anything, just drifting where the tides took him. He did whatever job he had very well, impressed the right people along the way, took advantage of several opportunities and saw his career progress in ways and places that no law school graduate could ever imagine.

“I got to do things I enjoyed doing, and it’s worked out really well,” he said.

Gadola was born and raised in Flint. Although his father, Paul V. Gadola, was an attorney, and later a U.S. District judge, and his grandfather was a Genesee County Circuit judge, Mike, as he prefers to be called, never had a mindset to enter law.

In high school, he was drawn into debate and public speaking classes, and had interests in politics and current events. He attended political conventions with his father, a staunch Republican, who also ran for public office. Gadola spent much of his youth working on campaigns, stuffing envelopes and other political chores.

After graduation, Gadola attended James Madison College at Michigan State University, a program that features smaller class size but is more demanding and rigorous with the emphasis on research and writing.

He said the period while he was at James Madison ushered in an interesting time in state Republican politics, with President Ronald Reagan and Gov. John Engler. Gadola landed a job in Lansing, working in the mail room at the Department of Licensing and Regulation and for the Senate Republican Caucus Services. In 1986, Gadola managed a state senate campaign in Saginaw.

Eventually, Gadola took the LSAT, did well and decided to go to law school. “At a certain point the logic of going to law school couldn’t be resisted,” he said. “It would give me more of a career than kicking around working on political campaigns the rest of my life.”

He entered Wayne State University Law School in 1987 and graduated three years later. He also met his wife, Prevti, in the first week of law school. They have two children, Sameer, 16, and Malini, 13.

Gadola was Editor-in-Chief of the Wayne Law Review, which helped him get hired by Dickinson Wright. Gadola believed he’d become a litigator, but opportunities to argue in court were few and far between.

So Gadola left in 1991 to become Gov. Engler’s deputy legal counsel and counsel for executive organization, which included working on judicial appointments, tribal issues, prison litigation, and emergency management matters for the State Police.

“It involved a lot of the same sort of things I’m working on here today,” Gadola said. “There was a wide variety, and a lot of responsibility.”

From 1995-96, he became Director of the Office of Regulatory Reform, but returned to Dickinson-Wright for two years, specializing in general litigation, telecommunications, and election law. Although he says he enjoyed the law firm and loved the people, “...[I]t was not my cup of tea, not what I envisioned, and it confirmed for me that large firm law practice was not for me,” he said. “And I missed politics and public policy.”

He returned to Engler’s staff, but saw another opportunity in 1999 when he became House Majority Counsel.

Nearly 60 members were new to their seats. “We were all kind of new, and it was an exciting time,” Gadola said. “The legislature has a different energy and pace... I like dealing with people and personalities, and watching the sausage get made, and how deals come together, and being at the epicenter of these big decisions.”

Another opportunity came in 2001 when Gadola moved to the state Supreme Court as counsel, and later became general counsel for State Court Administrator’s Office; he stayed there 10 years, the longest at any of his jobs.

Gadola said it was an interesting time in the state Supreme Court’s history, “some of it more pleasant than others,” as new judges took office and the shift in the balance of power occurred. Whether the justices in power were conservatives or liberals, Gadola said he “just looked out for the best interest of the court.”

As a Republican, Gadola dealt with strong personalities from his own party, and with Democrats throughout his career. “I’ve had good relationships because I treat people as people,” he said.

Last November, Gadola was named as Snyder’s legal affairs director. He said he didn’t lobby for the spot, and did not work on the Snyder campaign, and only got to know Snyder a few weeks before the election.

Gadola believes that as Snyder was scouting for talent to round out his staff, people put in “a good word for me.”

Being a Republican certainly doesn’t hurt, but Gadola likes to think he got Snyder’s eye because of his body of work throughout his career.

As counsel to the governor, Gadola handles issues and litigation in legislation, judicial appointments, executive orders and other matters. Gadola said his job carries much responsibility, but his capable staff means he can approach it with confidence.

Gadola said “It’s (been) a whirlwind.”

So Gadola may not meet the book definition of what most believe a lawyer should be, but he’s fine with that, too.

“You can do other things with the law, and my career is a pretty good example of that,” he said. And other family members who are judges do not see him as the black sheep of the family.

“I don’t think they feel sorry for me,” he said. “I’ve done okay.”
 

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