 The offices of Crumbie Law Group, perched on the 21st floor of 280 Trumbull Street, the Prudential Building in downtown Hartford, have an impressive view, extending across the river to the east and into Simsbury to the west. But the 10-attorney firm started from much more humble beginnings. Firm founder and owner, Andrew Crumbie, spent 20 years in law enforcement with the Connecticut State Police and the FBI. As retirement neared, he enrolled in law school. Before making this decision however, Crumbie described the excitement of sitting at the prosecution table, as the case agent for a major criminal case, as the federal prosecutor tried the case and there, the idea of becoming a lawyer crystallized. "Until then, as a kid from North Hartford, the thought of becoming a lawyer never entered my mind," Crumbie said. Crumbie, who had a Master's degree in management before attending law school, transferred to the mid-night shift, so he could attend law school during the day. With the crazy plan of working from 11pm-8am, then driving two hours to law school in Andover, Massachusetts, attending class for 5-6 hours, then driving two hours back home to sleep for an hour before suiting up to return to his day job (that was really a night job), the journey began. After the first year of law school, Crumbie began working for a large Hartford law firm in addition to his "day job" and maintained both jobs throughout law school. Looking around at the law firm landscape, Crumbie noticed a lack of black-owned law firms in Connecticut. With the goal of building a firm that would fill that gap, in 2007 he opened his first office: in his house. "I cleared out the den of all the furniture," he said. He brought in a desk and office supplies, and the new firm quickly became a family affair. Crumbie's 9-year-old son, Brenden, was excited about the prospect of a law firm in the house. "He literally called himself my assistant," Crumbie said. Business increased, and soon the operation began to seep out of the den and into the dining room. "As I started doing more wills and more real-estate closings, I started encroaching on the dining room," he said, with a laugh. "I got evicted." Crumbie moved his firm into office space at Linden Place in Hartford. His wife, sister, sister-in-law and sons took turns answering the phones. Andrew, Jr., then 17, did title searches and filings and recorded deeds. As a first step in building his firm, Crumbie approached a municipal agency whose offices were next door and solicited business. "Once I described my background and experience to the General Counsel, he hired my firm almost on the spot. I couldn't believe he was willing to give me a chance," Crumbie said. Next, Crumbie looked to the City of Hartford, which had offices directly across the street. Without an appointment, Crumbie walked in to meet with the City's Corporation Counsel, John Rose. Rose, who is the first black partner at a major law firm in Connecticut, was impressed by Crumbie's goal to start the largest black-owned firm in the state. Rose thought that Crumbie, with his background in law enforcement, would be a good fit to represent police officers in wrongful arrest cases. Crumbie got his first such case in 2008. "After we got this case, I thought I should get some help," Crumbie recalls. First hired was a young lawyer, Edward Schenkel, then a recent law school grad. A second lawyer was hired shortly after and from there the firm grew. The three attorneys worked together for the next year before moving to the spacious 280 Trumbull St. offices. "If we wanted to get work like the big firms, we had to look like the big firms," Crumbie said of the firm's change of address. The firm's office space seemed like more than they needed at the time. "You think we need such a big place," the attorneys asked Crumbie. "Trust me," he replied. "We will." And they did. Over the next two years, Crumbie added other municipal clients and businesses to the client roster. Then, Crumbie took another gamble. "I made a cold call to a major international retailer," he said. Crumbie managed to butter up an assistant to get a telephone audience with the company's General Counsel. From there a connection was formed. Eight-months of dogged pursuit paid off with a face-to-face meeting in late 2009. "Within a month of that meeting we started getting cases," he said. Crumbie Law Group prides itself on providing big-firm services, without the big-firm price tag. "Companies now really have to take their budgets into consideration when hiring outside lawyers," Crumbie said. "With the downturn in the economy, corporations are now forced to find alternatives to the exorbitant costs associated with big law firms without having to sacrifice the quality of work. This has been a significant driving force behind our growth." Crumbie commented. In 2010, the firm opened offices in Boston, MA, and with 10 attorneys, Crumbie's initial goal was realized: Crumbie Law Group became the largest state-certified MBE law firm in New England. While this may have satisfied Crumbie's passion three years ago, the growing firm now has its sights set on becoming a national presence with offices throughout the country. Feature your company on "MBE of the Week", send us your company profile, website, and logo or picture. |
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