Erich J. Schock

Erich J. Schock

Managing Shareholder and Chair, Real Estate, Land Use and Development Group

Fitzpatrick, Lentz & Bubba PC

“In addition to my legal practice, I serve as the managing shareholder of Fitzpatrick, Lentz & Bubba PC,” said Erich Schock. “FLB is a 40-lawyer law firm located in Center City Allentown. The role of the managing shareholder is to run the business side of the Firm. In that capacity, I have a variety of duties. … I am also the chair of the firm’s Real estate, Land Use and Development Group, one of the major practice areas at FLB.”

In 2022, Schock became sole managing shareholder. “Acknowledging that the workload would be difficult for a single person to handle, we planned on implementing other management changes to help make the transition a successful one. As could be expected, though, working through the initial parts of a transition is the most challenging. That the transition began on the heels of the pandemic, which among other consequences (and like most industries) placed hurdles in the hiring and retention of employees, only increased the task. While I would characterize my style as ‘lead from the front,’ going it alone can at times seem overwhelming. … To replicate what had worked before, I made a concerted effort to get support from the firm’s other attorneys and placed a greater reliance on the firm’s non-attorney management team. Accepting that the good of the firm meant delegating and taking the advice and assistance from a group that I knew I could rely upon resulted in the challenge being met.”