Daniel J. Ferency is an associate attorney with Faupel Law, PC.
He comes from a long familial line of prominent attorneys, including his great-uncle Zolton Ferency, a candidate for Michigan Governor in 1966 and founder of the Human Rights Party.
Ferency attended Western Michigan University as a Medallion Scholar and earned his Bachelor of Arts in English and Philosophy with a concentration in Professional and Applied Ethics.
He received his Juris Doctorate from Wayne State University Law School in 2013.
The son of two high school teachers, Ferency was raised in Midland with his twin brother and younger sister.
By Sheila Pursglove
Legal News
What is your most treasured material possession? I have seven guitars but I’m not sure I could pick out just one, especially the ones given to me by my father.
What advice do you have for someone considering law school? If you love to read, write, think about, and/or discuss important issues then law school could be for you. Don’t be afraid of the need to develop one or more of these interests after enrolling. Do it because you love the law, love what the law could be, or you just love expanding your way of thinking. Don’t do it for the money or because it sounds like a good career choice.
Favorite websites: Nate Silver’s website: fivethirtyeight.com; any mapping website, usually Google Maps or County GIS mapping sites; Curbed Detroit: detroit.curbed.com; The Detroit Free Press: freep.com
Favorite app: During baseball season, definitely the MLB.com At Bat app so I can check in on games.
Favorite album: Wilco’s Sky Blue Sky
What is your happiest childhood memory? Any or all of the summer days spent at my grandparents’ cottage on Blue Lake in Mecosta.
What would surprise people about your job? Practicing law is less about knowing the law and more about understanding people and how to get them to a comfortable and safe place in life—the law is just a means to that end, and an imperfect one at that.
What do you wish someone would invent? A machine that slows down or stops time—mostly so I could take a nap during the day without feeling guilty.
What has been your favorite year so far and why? 2014: I took and passed the bar exam, my first nephew was born, I got a job as an attorney at Faupel Law, PC in Ann Arbor, got engaged to my beautiful fiancée—life doesn’t get much better than that.
Why did you become a lawyer? In a nutshell, so that I could better understand, defend, and uphold the privileges and obligations that come with being a member of the community and citizenry in this so-called “government of laws” and eventually to help others to do the same thing.
What’s your favorite law-related TV show, movie, and/or book? More about the politics relating to lawmaking, but I love “House of Cards” on Netflix. Favorite movie would have to be “My Cousin Vinny,” and favorite book is “To Kill a Mockingbird.’
Who are your law role models—real and/or fictional? Real life: Zolton Ferency, my great-uncle who ran for Michigan governor and taught criminal justice at Michigan State University; and Marian Faupel—both for their absolute fearlessness. Fictional: Assistant District Attorney Jack McCoy on “Law & Order”—the man could give a closing argument.
If you could trade places with someone for a day, who would that be? Any of the of the U.S. Supreme Court Justices on a day that oral argument is scheduled.
What’s the most awe-inspiring place you’ve ever been? It’s a tie between Glacier National Park in Montana on a clear summer night and the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
What would you say to your 16-year-old self? Don’t take yourself too seriously.
What’s your proudest moment as a lawyer? Reading the first opinion from a circuit court judge with my name in the caption and referencing a direct examination I conducted and arguments I made at closing—the result was a good one, too! Just the fact that I was participating in the process in a meaningful way made me feel proud.
What do you do to relax? Go for a run or play guitar.
Which living person do you most admire? Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
What do you consider to be your greatest achievement? Graduating law school and passing the bar.
Where would you like to be when you’re 90? In Michigan, enjoying the company of family and friends.
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