DETROIT - Labor law attorney Jack Schulz, Wayne State University Law School class of 2013, is pretty sure his application to the Michigan State Bar was among "the most laughable of all times."

"They had to get criminal background checks and driving records from 16 states, and I had more than 35 different jobs and more than 40 different housing situations," he said.

Schulz, after getting a degree in political science from Michigan State University, worked as a political organizer. He planned and carried out campaigns, voter registration drives, ballot initiatives and other programs in states that included Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, Vermont and West Virginia.

"It became apparent throughout all the states, whether Arkansas, Michigan, New York, Colorado or California, that the working American is getting the shaft countrywide," Schulz said. "One of the most frustrating things about organizing is that you do so much, and then, at the end of the day, you're trying to motivate legislators and attorneys to do new policies. I got sick of watching other people not do what I wanted to happen. I wanted the tools to be the person who jumps in and does that."

He knew he had to go to law school to get those tools and took the LSAT, choosing Wayne Law after touring a few of the schools that had accepted him.

"I came here and did a tour of the school and thought to myself, 'This is the place where I can do the things I want to do,' " he said. "And if you look at where people got the tough end of things, Michigan is high up there. I thought, 'My fight is back home.' "

The son of a single mother who was a public schoolteacher, Schulz grew up in Saginaw and went to a public high school rich in diversity.

"I grew up thinking the whole world was as diverse," said Schulz, an outgoing guy who acknowledges he is never at a loss for words. "Then, I got out there and realized it's not. I love being around large groups of people, and I've always been inclusive. I got here and from the beginning I decided I was going to live in the city where the action was. I love Detroit."

As a law student, his gift of gab served him well. He was elected president of the Student Bar Association Board of Governors and served as a board member for the school's mock trial program.

Schulz, who still lives in Detroit, also worked as a student lawyer with the Free Legal Aid Clinic, an opportunity he praises.

"It gives you a chance to file motions and actually litigate your cases," he said. "Most importantly, you do client interviews. You get to see a case all the way through to resolution. You get to argue these hearings under a practicing attorney. It's great."

Schulz said he worked just as hard finding himself a labor law job as he did on his law school studies - and it paid off. He works for labor law firm Miller Cohen.

"I got that job through networking," Schulz said. "I went to every event and tried to meet everybody doing exactly what I wanted to do. I read every book. You have to hammer at finding the work opportunity you want."

Today, he's energized about using his skills as a labor attorney on behalf of workers.

"I can't believe that I get paid to participate in the fight for workers' rights," Schulz said with a grin. "I get to make a living fighting for the working man."

And he's proud to be with Miller Cohen.

"We try to help the working person," Schulz said. "Part of our firm's belief is that you're never not compensated for talking to a working person. We believe in treating everybody like they're the highest-paying client."

Seven questions with Jack Schulz

Q: What was your first job?

A: I worked at Subway as a sandwich artist. That was pre-Jared, back when you only had to choose white or wheat. Sometimes, no one would come in all day.

Q: Who is your personal hero?

A: My mom. She's moral and will stand up against what she thinks is wrong and, even to her own detriment, will not back down. If she knows something is wrong, she'll stick with what's right no matter what.

Q: What award are you most proud of?

A: I was selected by the National Labor Relations Board, Region 7, for the Bernard Gottfried Memorial Scholarship for Excellence in Labor Law when I was a law student. It was beyond special. It was an award for exactly what I want to do from exactly who I want to work with. All my co-workers came, my mom came - it was great.

Q: What three people, living or dead, would you like to have dinner with?

A:

• My Grandpa Schulz, who passed away a month before I was born. I hear I'm a lot like him.
• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., mostly to discuss the sacrifice of social change. I've watched that "I've been to the mountain top speech" several times, and it gives me chills. The man could have been anything but was shot in Memphis while helping garbage workers get a 10-cent raise.
• Huey Long. I've always found him to be the most intriguing political figure in our country's history. The Kingfish. Depending on who you ask, he is either the closest thing to an absolute tyrant our country has ever seen or one of its greatest advocates of income equality for the poor. He was brash and an absolute populist. The human embodiment of the question, "Do the ends justify means?"

Q: What music do you listen to?

A: Anything live. Detroit's got a great live music scene.

Q: If you could give your 15-year-old self a piece of advice, what would it be?

A: I'd tell him that a lot of these people who are teaching you and offering advice aren't going to be around forever. You need to appreciate that. They'll be a time when you wish you had taken it more seriously, and they won't be available.

Q: Who's your favorite lawyer or judge, real or fictional?

A: Bruce Miller. He's been doing this (labor law) for over 50 years, and he still has excitement to be doing it. Watching him get ready for a case is like watching a rock star before the concert. He gets fired up. And I get to work with him every day. (Bruce Miller of Miller Cohen is general counsel for the Metro AFL-CIO in Detroit and a Wayne Law class of 1954 alumnus.)