The Difficult, Yet Rewarding, Road to Recovery

• Publication year: 2023
• Citation: Vol. 46 No. 6 Pg. 24
• Pages: 24

The Difficult, Yet Rewarding, Road to Recovery Vol. 46 No. 6 Pg. 24 Wyoming Bar Journal December 2023

by Cody M. Jerabek

Editor's Note

The Wyoming Lawyer Assistance Program (WyLAP) was launched in 2014. Since its inception, WyLAP's Director has been retired Cheyenne lawyer Jack Speight. Effective January 1, 2024, Jack will hand the reins to Cody Jerabek, who has been instrumental in assisting Jack with helping several lawyers in trouble in the past year.

Hellof my name is Cody Jerabek.

I am a former attorney. My actions consisted of multiple personal and professional failures that led to formal disciplinary action being taken against me by the Wyoming State Bar, resulting in a three-year suspension from the practice of law by the Wyoming Supreme Court.

Before I was suspended, I was a criminal and civil defense attorney, with over 30 trials by jury. I was a public defender, a prosecutor, a chair of the Bar's Criminal Justice Section, a husband, a friend and a colleague to many of you. Before that, I was a professional and international rugby player, a Division 1 All American in Rugby and Track and Field, a UW College of Law graduate, a published researcher on Buddhist philosophy, and 50 other things that I will save you the trouble of reading through.

Currently, I am a father, a professional MMA fighter, the owner of a BBQ food truck and catering company, a

business consultant and life coach for multiple companies and executives around the United States, and the soon to be Director of the Wyoming Lawyer Assistance Program (WyLAP).

Most importantly, however, is that I am an alcoholic. I am not a former alcoholic, I am not a recovered alcoholic, I am an alcoholic. I have not had a drink in years, and plan to never drink again, but I am, and always will be, an alcoholic.

Recovery is humbling. It is the most humbling thing many people will ever experience. It is lonely, it is hard, and it is exhausting. But it is also transformative. It is also unfathomably rewarding and fulfilling. It is one of the greatest accomplishments of my life, and a defining component of my existence.

This label can mean a lot of different things to different people, and it coincides with a lot of other terms and categorizations of myself both internally and by those around me. For some of you that practiced with or against me while I was at my lowest, it could mean that you describe me as a belligerent, egotistical, illprepared and...