Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
Brett Dakin
Working through the FEMA appeals process with my client was a joy, primarily due to his relentless good spirits. This was despite the dual trauma he had experienced: the hurricane itself and the ensuing incompetence of the government agency tasked with helping him get back on his feet. I believe it helped my client to talk through his story with me, and when I told his story back to him--this time, in the clear, linear fashion of an attorney--I believe he felt that it somehow validated his experience. It was fulfilling to assist my client with the simplest of ministerial tasks, like phone calls, faxes and certified mailings to FEMA. FEMA representatives and attorneys often gave conflicting information and were unaware of the agency's own rules and regulations, but my client’s gratitude made the endless calls worth it. And when FEMA ultimately cut my client a check, I knew he deserved every penny of it.