Across the street from
the U.S. Capitol in the warm confines of Jones Day's Washington office,
champagne bottles were popping as more than 100 lawyers and their clients,
friends and family members watched President Barack Obama take the oath of
office on Monday.
Although party goers could have gone outside to view the festivities on a deck overlooking the U.S. Capitol, most of them watched the CBS News broadcast inside, where a breakfast spread complete with a full bar available. Cheers and applause were frequent in the seventh-floor conference room, one floor down from a rooftop studio sometimes used by CBS for its close-in view of the Capitol dome.
Geoffrey Stewart, a Jones Day partner who keeps offices in Washington and New York, noted that a "nice, diverse group of people" were at the party, which drew children and adults from across the country. "It's a lot of fun," he said.
Wiacek, a Democrat, said it also was great to see people of different political leanings come together at the firm to celebrate the inauguration.
But Wiacek wasn't optimistic about any long-lasting camaraderie among his fellow attorneys.
"In a week," he predicted, "they'll be back at it."
Photograph of the Jones Day party by Diego M. Radzinschi, National Law Journal
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