From Canadian Lawyer Magazine
Cross Examined
Written by Jennifer Brown
Whether it’s in the courtroom or on the ball diamond, Jack Fireman brings the same approach to winning — preparation and solid team building net you the best result.
The 76-year-old personal injury trial lawyer may be known as the driving force behind the championship-winning Toronto Gators (short for LitiGators!) fast pitch team, but ask him about one of his best memories of the sport and he will tell you about the fortitude and skill of one of his top players. “My 1995 team has been picked by people who know as the best fastball team ever,” says Fireman, a senior partner of Fireman Steinmetz Daya in Toronto. “When we went to the championships in Sioux City, Iowa, we lost our first game, and when you lose your first game at a world tournament, you are then forced to go through the losers bracket and play a lot of games in seven days. We couldn’t lose another game — we had to win 11 games in seven days.”
The team had what Fireman calls “the greatest pitcher ever” — Darren Zack from the Garden River First Nation in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., a member of the International Softball Congress Hall of Fame. “He was just incredible. He pitched 11 shutouts. It was still hard to win, but a lot easier when you have a pitcher like that,” he says.
Some have called Fireman the “George Steinbrenner of fast pitch.” He has sponsored the Toronto Gators and went on to win the International Softball Congress’ World Championships in 1993 and 1995. In August this year, he was inducted into the ISC Hall of Fame and received the Bob Welby Memorial recognition of service award in South Bend, Ind.