FIRM FORWARD
Law office innovations
At first glance, it’s hard to guess that
a law firm is housed in the four-story,
33,000-square-foot structure known as
EcoCentre, located in Lake Worth a mile from
the ocean. No dark wood paneling lines its
corridors; no imposing rows of legal volumes
fill its walls. The building is flooded with light
and full of greenery; and in the middle, a 12-
foot waterfall gives off a gentle roar.
The tour guide showing the eco-friendly
building? More than likely, the head of
Romano Law Group, John F. Romano.
“We get visitors when conventions of
engineers or seminars of interior design
professionals are in the area,” says Romano,
with unmistakable enthusiasm. “It might be
teachers bringing over classes from local col-
leges or grade schools. … I can be available!”
The EcoCentre is an ambitious attempt
to build a firm’s sense of responsibility right
into the structure it inhabits. “We won’t get
a second chance to protect and preserve
Mother Nature for future generations,” says
Romano. He and his wife, Nancy, have four
sons, four daughters-in-law, and 11 grand-
children. “It is our moral responsibility to do
our part now—right now.”
The Green Team
The eco-friendly environs
of the Romano Law Group BY RJ SMI TH
It was built on the site of a medical prac-
tice owned for years by his father. The build-
ing needed to be dismantled—so all the
materials were recycled. The grand opening
came in summer 2008. The structure is reg-
istered with the U.S. Green Building Council.
Recycled Chicago brick was used for the
exterior; inside wood is eco-friendly. And the
“Living Machine” at the core of the EcoCentre
purifies water from sinks and showers and
recirculates it to irrigate interior landscaping. Condensation from the air-conditioning
system creates a waterfall and ponds.
Eric Romano, one of John’s two sons at
the firm, points out a patch of trees and
greenery on the roof. It helps collect rain
water, used to flush toilets.
“Some of the trees take bad things out
of the water, some put good things into the
water,” says Eric. “It naturally cleans out
the water.”
“It kind of makes you feel like you’re at the
ocean or alongside a stream,” says attorney
Todd Romano, John’s other son at the firm.
The whole Centre, which has other ten-
ants, follows green principles. Romano goes
paperless as much as possible—there are
no piles of banker’s boxes. The green ethos
reaches right down to the lubricant used in
the elevator: vegetable-based oil.
A hard-charging ex-Marine and Florida
State University football star might seem an
unlikely first-round draft pick for the environmental movement. “I guess you can say
that I grew up as a Bambi child,” he says.
“And as much as I am so proud of my time in
the Marine Corps, it would be fair to say that
I looked upon the mission as to seek and
keep peace, not to go out and start wars.”
Romano formed the firm in 1991, and it’s
become a personal injury powerhouse.
Clients have included computer engineer
who witnessed an automobile accident and
was calling 911 when the driver head-butted
him. His head hit the pavement “like a hollow
coconut,” a witness said. The Romano firm
sued the head-butter and his employer, and
in 2013 won $28.5 million for Adams, permanently injured by the assault, and his family.
“We are a law firm,” says Romano, “that
I truly refer to as on the front lines duking it
out in battle day in and day out.”
• An 8,000-gallon cistern on the roof collects rainwater
for recycling, ending up in a tank under the garage
• No traditional air conditioning ductwork on the roof.
The building is cooled with a “chiller” system,
featuring a 12-inch gap beneath each floor
• All wood used in furniture, railings and countertops
comes from eco-certified lumber providers
• Recirculation saves 200,000 gallons of water per year
• Gray water is recycled to operate flush toilets
• Huge windows flood the atrium with light. No dark wood here
• The Centre cost $12 million to build
John Romano, Eric Romano
PERSONAL INJURY:
PLAINTIFF
ROMANO LAW GROUP
LAKE WORTH
