Love Be a Lawyer Tonight

When he isn’t writing legal briefs, Jeffrey Abrams pens wedding ceremonies and poems for his friends and family

Published in 2006 Indiana Super Lawyers magazine

By Judd Spicer on February 14, 2006

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For many lawyers, writing is an arduous task. The contracts, the briefs, the complaints — not everyone relishes the process. But for Dann Pecar Newman & Kleiman attorney Jeffrey Abrams, the placing of pen to paper is a labor of love.

 
“My writing came along with my first practice at this firm,” Abrams — a one-time accounting student — recalls of his beginnings with Dann Pecar in 1979. “Phil Pecar, my mentor, and Norm Newman were brilliant people and great writers. They would revise a document four or five times before sending it out. So I learned early on that choosing my words was critical in our practice.”
 
Abrams has indeed chosen his words wisely, as evidenced by his long and successful run with the Indianapolis firm noted for its expertise in real estate law, specializing in shopping center transactions.
 
But Abrams doesn’t just write about the law. For years, he has lent his pen to the creation of wedding ceremonies and poems celebrating the special occasions of family and friends. Since 1985, Abrams has also performed weddings for friends and family in his native Indianapolis. The process involves filling out the same paperwork as a judge pro temp, followed by the filing of those forms with the clerk’s office along with information related to the specific wedding.
 
And while such documents make Abrams “Judge for a Day,” he is forever aware of the individual meaning surrounding each wedding and every couple.
 
“I really enjoy them,” Abrams says. “I enjoy writing the service and being part of it. There’s so much love and joy. It’s a unique experience and a real honor when somebody asks me to perform a ceremony, for what may very well be one of the most important days of their lives.”
 
Abrams may be the best at sending couples off into wedded bliss, but even he can’t work miracles if a marriage is just not meant to be.
 
“I knew he had performed several ceremonies before mine,” Steve Jacobs, Abrams’ brother-in-law, says. He asked Abrams to perform his wedding because he and his then-fiancée had contrasting religious backgrounds. “Jeffrey had made the comment that he had a perfect record, with nobody getting divorced. … My wife and I were married seven weeks.”
 
Although they joke today about how Jacobs broke the streak of successful marriages, Jacobs speaks earnestly about Abrams’ unique ability to captivate a crowd with his words.
 
“He manages to touch what matters to people,” Jacobs says. “The things he talks about are poignant. His words represent what the person is all about, and how that person interacts with everybody else. He brings people into it.”

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