Ones to Watch 2019: Allen Hankins, Bernkopf Goodman

Year you entered your current field? 2012

How have your life experiences impacted who you are professionally? I was born in rural Montana, where many people started out with very little. People who wanted to succeed had to create their own opportunities. Seeing individuals grow, and even thrive, despite their circumstances, has given me a belief in clients who are growing their business – people who have a vision and desire to create their own success. I share their excitement and take pride in helping them realize those visions.

What advice can you offer to someone who is interested in a career in your industry? Get as much hands-on experience as possible while in law school. Do an internship or volunteer to help an organization with basic legal work. You can learn an incredible amount by actually doing something rather than reading about it. The people who you work with will get to see your ambition and your work product. Even if they can’t offer you a job, they can become advocates who want to help you. That’s far more powerful than any meet-and-greet you go to.

Who or what do you attribute to your success? My Grandpa had a saying that successful people owe a little bit to luck. “And the harder you work, Allen, the luckier you get.” I’ve never forgotten that. I think a lot of people believe that once they get out of law school, pass the bar exam, and finally start a job, they should be able to enjoy the fruits of that hard work. I’ve found that for a successful associate, that’s when the hard work really begins. 

What do you consider to be your greatest professional accomplishment in the last 12 months? A client sold several apartment buildings in Manhattan that weren’t producing the desired cash flow. They’re replacing those assets (which were worth about $80 million) with cash-producing single-tenant properties across the country. There are significantly more replacement properties, as the purchase prices are lower than the sale prices of the apartment buildings. I am representing them in the acquisition of those properties on a compressed schedule so that we minimize the time between the sale and reinvestment of the proceeds. The end result will be that the client ends up with a more diversified portfolio and receives greater cash flow. Everybody wins.