Comedians

Alex Barnett earned his law degree from St. Johns University School of Law, practiced for a while, but really wanted to be a stand-up comic (yes, I know–what’s the difference between a lawyer and a comedian–lawyers eat better?). Read more about him here.

Mr. Barnett isn’t the first attorney to see the humorous side of life. The late defense attorney Kenneth Kahn was also a standup comedian, who wrote about his life in the book The Carny Kid: Survival of a Young Thief (2005).  Edinburgh (Scotland) lawyer Shona White practices real estate by day, improv comedy by night. 

Another lawyer turned comedian is Matt Ritter, who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and worked at both Kirkland and Ellis and Mayer Brown. But the bright lights of Hollywood beckoned; he does improv in Hollywood now. He’s also a producer (“Duck Dynasty,” “Fat N’ Furious.”). More about Mr. Ritter here.

The ABA highlights an entire merry band of lawyer/comedians here in a 2012 article by Stephanie Francis Ward for the ABA Journal.

Demetri Martin dropped out of NYU Law School after two years to pursue a career as a comedian, and has done rather well. And Al Lubel left a thriving practice to become, well, a thriving comedian. San Diego lawyer Christian Spicer combines the two careers. The late Greg Giraldo was an attorney (Harvard Law School) before he gained fame in comedy clubs and on television. Dean Obeidallah, another lawyer, got his start when his colleagues told him he was funny. Susan Sparks is a lawyer, a minister, and a comedian. Azhar Usman, with the “Allah Made Me Funny” comedy tour, has a JD from the University of Minnesota Law School. Jerry Blaine, a lawyer who goes by Jeff Lisabeth when he works as a comedian, is yet another stand-up guy. More here.