We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful LaDray Gilbert. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with LaDray below.

Alright, LaDray thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Before we talk about all of your success, let’s start with a story of failure. Can you open up about a time when you’ve failed?

It’s no coincidence that I can speak directly to this topic. At the age of 40, I lost everything material that I owned including my career and money. In addition, my father, the man that had been my anchor my entire life, passed away from cancer. If a person had approached me ten years prior and told me that this would be how I would be approaching the beginning of the fifth decade of my life, I would have cursed them to be mad. However, as I approached this milestone age of my life, everything I had built had been toppled and I was left, disheveled, in the ruins.
The life I had built for myself after law school came tumbling down with an immense speed. To boot, in the process, people had been hurt and mistreated. Overnight, my life was turned upside down. Once a proud and active member of the Florida Bar, I had lost the privilege to practice. After having built my law firm from my mother’s kitchen table to a viable, national personal injury practice had gone up in smoke. Even my volunteerism of serving on national, state, and local boards had fallen by the wayside. I watched, and listened, as my name, reputation, and character were, seemingly, destroyed. But, more especially, I felt as if I had let my friends and family down and it felt perpetual. The mentees I had in my life, ironically, became some of my best supporters with kind and loving words in my search for footing. Yes, the age of 40 had presented a unique set of challenges and I had no idea what was heading my way as I built my career. What could I possibly do next?

It was imperative that I figure out where and how I would rebuild my life. The next chapter in my life was marred with guilt and shame from my past. It seemed an impossible hill to climb as I searched for a path forward. I still had children to live for, so giving up was not an option. I had friends and family turn their backs. Phone calls went unanswered and were unreturned. Opportunity after opportunity was denied because of what people read in the papers as opposed to who I was in my heart. It was, and still is, a tumultuous time. However, reestablishing myself was a path that I chose to enact a familiar approach.

As the old phrase suggests, ‘When you know better, you do better.’ Service, giving, and loving are how I established myself in this portion of my life. I relocated to an area of the world with more like and open-minded individuals. I found a new church home and began serving. Also, I found more mentees and served organizations feeding the homeless.

Out of pure necessity, I established a business that consulted with persons regarding legal, political, and business issues. I was named a Co-Chair of a committee in one of the most prestigious organizations in this country. I found the love of my life and was married. Things have slowly begun to swing back in my favor and that is because, no matter what I had been through, no matter what I had been labeled, no matter what people thought of me, I KNEW who I was and was dead set on showing that to the rest of the world. It is still a slow, tedious work in progress, but it is progressing, nonetheless.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

LaDray Gilbert, a renowned and admired public servant, has had a distinguished career as Managing Partner of The Gilbert Firm, P.A. for over a decade. Located in the Florida Panhandle, Gilbert grew the firm into a multimillion-dollar law practice that started from his mother’s kitchen table. After years of mounting legal victories, he became a nationally recognized attorney. During his nearly 12-year career, Gilbert has recovered millions on behalf of his clients and has toppled such Giants as Wal-Mart, Family Dollar, and the State of Florida, to name a few. When he started his firm in 2009, he was the youngest and only African American to do so immediately following law school in Jackson County, Florida history. Gilbert holds a B.S. degree in Business Administration from Florida A&M University and a JD from the Florida A & M University College of Law. He has made in indelible impact on the lives of the citizens of Jackson County, Florida, the Florida Panhandle, and the Southeast United States in general.

He was recognized as one of the nation’s Top 40 Under 40 Best Advocates in 2016 by the National Bar Association. Gilbert has been heralded as a “Platinum Client Champion” and “Preeminent Attorney” by Martindale-Hubbell as recently as 2021. Martindale Hubbell also noted him as having the “Highest Legal and Ethical Standards” as noted by Members of the Judiciary. He has been deemed a “Rising Star” by Florida Super Lawyers. The William Reece Smith Florida Bar Leadership Academy named LaDray its “Mr. Integrity”. For his community volunteerism, LaDray was tapped by the Florida Supreme Court as the “14th Judicial Circuit Pro Bono Lawyer of the Year” His crowning achievement came when Florida A&M University selected him as a “Distinguished Alumni” at the age of 37. Gilbert is respected throughout the United States and internationally for his keen insights on the law and his advocacy for the education of minority students, and his unique and visionary approaches to producing successful professional, political, and educational outcomes.

LaDray has served as Chairman, Board of Directors of the National Top 100 Black Lawyers Continuing Legal Education Committee. He also has worked with the Alabama Statewide Organization of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated as its Deputy Counselor. Gilbert served three terms as the President of the FAMU College of Law Alumni Alliance where his board helped raised over $100,000 in scholarships. In his community, he has volunteered his time in a myriad of capacities. He was the Presiding Judge for Jackson County Teen Court. He was the youngest African American Member of the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. He has been a member of the Board of Director of the Jackson County Education Foundation. LaDray is the founding president of the Northwest Florida Chapter of the FAMU Alumni Association.

LaDray is in high demand as a keynote and motivational speaker. He has traveled all over the country delivering addresses to various crowds at a myriad of events. Gilbert has delivered addresses at Harvard, Brown, The Citadel, and UNC-Chapel Hill to name a few. In October of 2018, Gilbert was invited to Harvard University to speak on a panel regarding the challenges of reentry of offenders released from prison. The panel was comprised or several Ivy League Professors speaking about combating and resolving the problems presented. Gilbert centers his messages on: Dreaming, Faith, Perseverance, and Community Involvement.

As a mentor, Gilbert has created the Jackson County Omega Lamplighters and The F.L.A.M.E. Academy. The Lamplighters and FLAME are a mentoring group for males sponsored by Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated, of which LaDray is a proud Life Member. In his work in building these programs, Gilbert has taken young males from the rural farms of North Florida to The White House in Washington, DC. Each year, the kids are treated to a cross country trip that teaches them about The Civil Rights Movement as well as introduces them to college campuses. Several of his Lamplighters/FLAME have excelled in the program and were invited to participate in the New England Science Symposium sponsored by Harvard Medical School.

Gilbert is the father of two, Madison and Maddox, and is the son of the late Johnnie Lee and Carnell C. Gilbert. He is also the godson of Ulysses and the late Glenda Dudley.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

As I have grown as a man, I have had a myriad of mentors that have helped me build my brand and career. Without a doubt, the common factor among all the advice I’ve been given is perseverance. I’m order to achieve anything great in this world, one must be ready to fight what may seem at times as insurmountable odds. Staying with the battle is what separates the good from the great in my mind.

For some, it’s just enough to be in this world everyday. However, I’m constantly focused on growing, improving, and lifting others. When I was young, my father strongly suggested that I stick close to home, but I centered out into the world at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee. It was there that I met my mentors, developed lifelong relationships, and experienced unforgettable moments. FAMU is also where I learned how to be met with great obstacles, yet push forward to overcome and achieve.

While matriculating through school, I lost focus for a while and my GPA suffered, immensely. By the time the smoke cleared and reattached myself to my goals, I was looking at an uphill battle to even be considered for law school. With the help of the faculty and staff as well as my peers, I was able to pull my GPA up and get into law school. They believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself and they held me accountable at every turn. When I looked up, not only was I a college grad, but I was headed to law school. The lessons I learned through that process were vital to building my brand as I moved forward.

As I walked my journey, the faith, perseverance, and tenacity I learned at FAMU helped me develop and implement a strategy to build my brand. Trusting yourself when all others doubt you is a pivotal thought process in overcoming great difficulty. Having walked through the fire time and time again, I have learned to believe and push ahead no matter the circumstances. That is what has allowed me to brand and rebrand myself time and time again.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

A lesson that I’ve had to unlearn during my life’s journey is that I have to do things alone. During a recent conversation with a good friend of mine, we were discussing a project and how best to implement strategies for success. This type of project, event planning, is something that I feel very good about my ability to execute. However, my friend had different ideas of how to move forward. In the past, I would have pushed back and tried to do the project alone instead of trying to work with anyone. Instead, I employ the old thought of: ‘If you want to go, go alone. If you want to go far, go with someone.’ For too long had I tried to work, build, and solve problems on my own. That had led to disaster in previous experiences. I had to switch my strategy.

Now, when I endeavor to work in life, business, or on noble projects, I understand the importance of working with people and appreciating their ideas and input. i have seen the exponential growth in my life from utilizing this approach. With my newfound thoughts about how to attack and complete tasks, I’m excited as to where this journey will take me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://100southmetro.org/mirror-100/
• Instagram: mirror100_southmetro100
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/l-brandan-gilbert-jd-69b315232