VADA Member Spotlight

This month’s spotlighted VADA member is Rachel Horvath of Morin & Barkley LLP in Charlottesville.  Rachel has served on the VADA Board of Directors since 2017.  She currently is the Regional Director for the Blue Ridge Region, which is comprised of members in Virginia’s 16^th, 24^th, 25^th, and 26^th Judicial Circuits.  In addition to her involvement on the Board of Directors, Rachel has served on VADA’s Long-Range Planning Committee and on our Website Committee.

 

1.         Where were you born?

I was born in Fairfax, Virginia. 

2.         Spouse? Children? Pets?

My husband of ten years is Chris LeBlanc.  We have two boys: Noah and Zevi.  Noah is 4 and Zevi is 4 months.  We also have a dog, Laney.  We found her in 2007 in a parking lot in New Orleans (where we used to live) when she was a puppy. 

3.         What type of law do you practice?

I have a fairly broad civil litigation practice.  I handle medical malpractice defense, trucking and auto litigation, insurance coverage litigation, landlord/tenant cases, business disputes, and other personal injury and insurance defense.  I also represent healthcare providers in response to DHP complaints. 

4.         How long have you been a member of VADA?

Almost ten years. 

5.         What have you enjoyed most about your time in VADA?

I really enjoy meeting other attorneys around the Commonwealth with similar legal practices. 

6.         What do you like most about practicing law?

I like getting to know people that I otherwise would not meet, and learning their stories. 

7.         What was your first job?

When I was in high school, I was the song leader for my synagogue’s Sunday school and a swim coach. 

8.         What was your favorite subject in school?

I was a psychology major in college, and I loved those courses.  I also took a sociology class on Tibetan refugees my senior year.  At the end of the course, we took a trip to India.  That was one of the coolest places I’ve ever been, and I’d love the opportunity to return some day. 

9.         What is the best book you have ever read?

This is too tough to answer.  I love to read.  Some of my favorite authors are Gillian Flynn, Tana French, and Liane Moriarty. 

10.       What is the one thing you cannot live without?

Coffee.  Having two young children is exhausting!

11.       What is at the top of your bucket list?

Travel.  I would like to see more of Europe and the United States. 

12.       Do you have a favorite TV or movie quote?

“Stop trying to make fetch happen.  It’s not going to happen.”  -Mean Girls

13.       What is something even your friends probably don’t know about you?

I’m pretty much an open book.  I can’t think of anything that my friends don’t know about me. 

14.       If you could have dinner with any person, living or dead, who would it be?

I would love to have dinner one last time with my maternal grandparents.  They were very important to me.  I would ask them more questions about their lives, and I would have them meet my children, who were born after they passed. 

15.       When I am not in the office, I like to …

Spend time with my family.  Preferably, somewhere with a scenic view and a glass of wine.  Luckily, Charlottesville has many such places. 

16.       If I wasn’t practicing law, I would be …

Working in the tasting room at a winery. 

17.       What is your favorite sports team?

The New Orleans Saints.  Who Dat!

18.       What advice would you give someone who just passed the bar?

Keep an open mind.  Don’t box yourself in to one practice area.  Find areas that interest you, and pursue cases in those areas.

19.       What is your definition of success?

Being happy with my life, both personally and professionally.  I strive to do work and have a personal life that makes me happy.  If I can accomplish that, I believe I will have achieved success.