Gitelle Seer
Director of Library Services
Dewey Ballantine LLP - New York, NY
Good Times (No) Riches . . . with Apologies to Jimmy Buffett
Law Library Journal Fall, 2001
I sometimes think that only a complete lack of imagination, or profound inertia, has kept me at the same firm for lo these many years. I often tell those who look at me incredulously when they learn how many years I have been here that my birth certificate states my place of birth as Dewey Ballantine. Of course, it could be that the structure and patterns of my job, which I find reassuring, combined with the recurring elements of fluidity and change, which I find challenging, are what have kept me rooted for so long.
I wish I could say that my career followed a master plan, but that would be stretching the truth. My tenure at Dewey Ballantine LLP began over thirty years ago, when I casually stumbled into the job as assistant librarian. I came to meet the head librarian, Beatrice McDermott, in her capacity as job placement coordinator for the Law Library Association of Greater New York, the New York chapter of AALL. We spoke for no more than a few minutes when she told me that she had just gotten approval to hire a professional librarian as her assistant and asked if I wanted the job. She must have known instinctively that it would be a good fit, just as did I. So with no more thought than that, I started my career at this firm. I'll skip the part where the senior tax attorney who subsequently interviewed me asked if I planned to get married or pregnant—I think it was in that order—any time soon, to which I convincingly answered "no." In those days the question was not illegal, although perhaps in questionable taste. And five years later, during my first baby shower (thankfully he had retired by my second), this same partner looked me straight in the eye and said, "But you promised!"
There is no more reassuring way to start a career than by having an exacting but encouraging mentor. Bea McDermott was that person in spades, as were several of her contemporaries—professional librarians who graciously took me under their collective wings in my fledging stage as an enthusiastic, but often clueless, librarian. Frankly, I don't know how she tolerated my endless questions and need for reassurance in those early days. But if I drove her patience to the limits, or made her question her own judgment in hiring me, she never once showed it.
I suppose a good deal of the satisfaction that I get from my job derives from the high comfort level that I have at Dewey Ballantine. The environment, culture, atmosphere—whatever you call the ineffable feeling of rightness—has provided a great deal of independence. I realized very early in my career that I enjoyed working for a partnership, a business form that is structured without being rigid. Although the lack of multiple layers of management or complex reporting relationships sometimes means it is unclear to whom to turn for support, over the years I have developed both formal and informal conduits to the partnership and the firm management.
By nature I am not a whiner, and I consider myself very adaptable (although my family might disagree!). No doubt this trait has seen me through the bad times. And there certainly have been a few, such as the downsizing that we, along with many other law firms and businesses, went through in the early 1990s. My approach was to get with the program rather than rail against the unfairness of the process. Well, okay, I did quite a bit of railing too, but mostly to myself and a few close colleagues. In fact, that is a very useful survival technique—find that group of like-minded, realistic, and sympathetic professional colleagues who can act as your sounding board and your safety (or should I say sanity) net.
There have been a number of energizing influences in my career. One of the most important has been my involvement with the various professional associations and publications that support our field. I am a firm believer in the value of networking and have found that almost every interaction with professional colleagues over the years has yielded some benefit to me or to my firm, whether in the form of information or affirmation. The opportunities to contribute to our collective professional growth are many and can be as all-consuming as holding elective office,1 or less time-intensive but equally satisfying as mentoring.
And of course there is my staff. Working with a professional and talented staff, many of whom seem to have the same nesting instincts that I do, has made me look good countless times in countless ways over the years. I try to make sure that the firm recognizes what a group effort it is.
The other major energizing factor has been the introduction and adaptation of technology. Much to my surprise—and this from the woman who can't program a thermostat, let alone a VCR—I have found myself in a decades-long love affair with technology. With the enthusiastic cooperation of my creative staff I have been able to imagine, and then implement, many exciting changes in the way in which we manage the business of providing information.
As I began to see the impact of computers on our lives, and our livelihood, I consciously set out to learn as much as I could about technology infrastructure, not wanting to limit myself solely to the applications that we provide and support. I knew that it would be important to be able to converse with our "techies" in their language, while respecting the often-amorphous boundaries of our respective domains.
Similarly, years ago I saw the importance of running the library as a business and began to develop better budgeting and financial accountability systems. Perhaps it is the perception of control, but I actually enjoy the fiscal responsibility that comes with this job. Although not one for quantifying every move we make (or every breath we take), I can usually assemble the figures that I need to make a point or defend a position.
Despite the trend toward self-service information, I see our role as information professionals growing. Quite honestly, I am not particularly adept at self-promotion in the larger sense within my firm, but I am not half-bad at highlighting—at every opportunity—the ways in which our talents and resources contribute to the high quality products that our firm generates, whether it is legal advice, speeches and articles, or our Web presence. I think that being so involved in these processes—business development, recruiting, marketing, Internet and Intranet design—is ultimately what keeps the job fresh and challenging.
I know that I am not the first law librarian to publicly declare that I get paid for having a good time. So is it a testament to the profession, the firm, the changing nature and challenges of the industry, or all three? I can't say for sure, but I do know that I intend to continue having a good time for quite a few years to come.
1. Editor's Note: Gitelle Seer has served as the president of the Law Library Association of Greater New York (1978–79) and secretary of the American Association of Law Libraries (1986–89).
For More Information About Law Librarianship or the AALL Recruitment Committee, contact committee chair Sarah Mauldin.