Lawrence Seidman grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. He attended Culver Military Academy the first three years of high school, but graduated from Bay Village High School. He earned a bachelor's degree in business administration, and went on to law school at Case Western Reserve University. Lawrence and his wife moved to Chicago after he finished law school, where he worked in the First National Bank of Chicago doing estate planning and analysis. He wanted to try teaching, so he sent letters to many different schools. Ferris State College in Michigan gave him an interview, and he and his wife moved there for one academic year. The freezing cold winter convinced them that they did not want to stay in the Midwest, so Lawrence began writing letters to schools out west. UNR replied to the letter they received, saying they had no openings, but he might try Nevada Southern University in Las Vegas. The school was in the middle of changing its name to University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV). Lawrence flew out, interviewed with future colleagues, and accepted the job. He and his wife have lived in Vegas ever since 1969. Lawrence was the first full-time person hired to teach business law. He restructured the way the courses were developed and presented. A discipline officer was needed after the regents passed a new code of conduct and he was asked to take the position, which he did. Because the administrative or discipline officer reports to the president of the university, he got to know several of them rather well. Eventually, Lawrence became assistant general counsel, and also served as deputy attorney general for a while. His wife Janet pursued her degrees at UNLV, taught for about five years, and then worked at Children's Behavioral Services. Today they are both retired, and are enjoying traveling and working on their home. Lawrence occasionally teaches summer sessions at UNLV.