Breaking the Ice: Attorney returns after cross-country adventure

After 21,000-plus miles, 32 states and ventures into Canada and Mexico, Joe Ceronsky has returned to Maslon after a nearly year-long family road trip.

“It’s good to reconnect with all my friends and co-workers,” said Ceronsky, who first joined Maslon in 2010 after earning his law degree.

Returning “has made my wife and I more grateful for all the positive aspects of our jobs,” said Ceronsky, a product liability lawyer who also handles appeals.

On the road, Ceronsky, his wife and their two children stayed in 55 different campgrounds and visited 48 county, state and national parks. They jumped into all five Great Lakes, watched sunrise over the Atlantic, sunset over the Pacific and surfed in both oceans.

Their own trips, shorter and then longer ones, had gone well, while online videos of families traveling for months added inspiration, said Ceronsky, who bought a truck and travel trailer (now sold) for the marathon adventure. His wife homeschooled the kids along the way.

“If we were going to do this, it’s now or never,” Ceronsky said, with their son heading into high school and daughter following behind.

Name: Joe Ceronsky

Title: Counsel, Maslon

Education: B.A., political science, St. John’s University; J.D., University of Minnesota Law School

Q: Best way to start a conversation with you?

A: Ask me what I do for fun. I try to ask people what they do for fun. It’s more fun to talk about what people do outside of work.

Q: Why law school?

A: I didn’t intend on going to law school before undergrad. I found political science interesting and after majoring in that and working for a few years in state politics, I didn’t want to work in politics anymore. Law school seemed like a good option.

Q: What are you reading?

A: On the trip, my favorite book was “The Order of Time” by Italian physicist Carlo Rovelli. It’s about relativity and space, time and the universe. The parts I did understand were mind-blowing.

Q: Pet peeve?

A: Unnecessarily adversarial opposing counsel. We all have the duty to advocate for our clients, but I prefer to do it in a nice way if possible.

Q: Best part of your work?

A: The opportunity to think creatively and strategically, which I enjoy. And, when you can get a better result for a client than they were expecting.

Q: Most challenging?

A: Keeping track of all the facts and details on so many different cases. I envy those lawyers who seem like they can remember everything off the top of their head. I have to write everything down to remember it.

Q: Favorite activity away from work?

A: I play hockey, golf, pickleball, water sports and play as many sports as I can when I have time. I’ve coached my kids’ sports. Right now, I’m coaching my daughter’s softball team.

Q: Where would you take someone visiting your hometown?

A: I’d take them to the Churchill Street restaurant in Shoreview. I grew up in Arden Hills and live now in Shoreview, so they’re kind of neighboring cities in the northern suburbs. Churchill Street is a restaurant that my sister-in-law started in 2021. Brunch is a specialty. I’d recommend the breakfast sandwich and the fried chicken sandwich.

Q: Legal figure you admire?

A: Bryan Stevenson with the Equal Justice Initiative. He’s known for “Just Mercy,” his autobiography that was made into a movie starring Michael B. Jordan. He started doing death penalty and wrongful-conviction work in the South in the ’80s. He fought against all odds and got some good results for some of his clients. The Equal Justice Initiative now has three Legacy sites in Montgomery, Alabama. On our trip, we met some friends there and toured those museums and memorials. It was cool to be in a hot spot of the Civil Rights movement.

Q: Misconception about your work?

A: That I’m in court all the time. A lot of us civil litigators, we go to court. But a typical day is sitting behind a desk, reading things on your computer.