Before I left for the Orlando office on day one, I was engulfed with feelings of eagerness and excitement to start what I knew was bound to be an unforgettable ten weeks. The Tampa Summer Associate, Jessica Baik, and I carpooled to the office to begin day one of training. We arrived about 30 minutes before breakfast and waited in the conference room before meeting Orlando attorneys and staff, Jeff Grosholz, the Tallahassee Summer Associate, and Freddy Kasten, the Miami Summer Associate. Once everyone arrived, we helped ourselves to a delicious buffet breakfast and gathered around the huge conference table to eat and get to know one another. It was great seeing the attorneys I interviewed with, and I was excited to meet new attorneys and staff that I would be working with over the next ten weeks.

After breakfast, we jumped into our busy day-long schedule of orientation, training sessions, tours, and—of course—the infamous photo-shoot. Having a full day-and-a-half of training with the other three Summer Associates made me feel relieved that we would be given all the tools to succeed throughout the program. Although I already knew Jessica from attending Stetson together, I was glad to get to know the other two Summer Associates. After a full day of training, the four of us and a group of Orlando attorneys and staff walked over to the Great Escape Room and spent our night rummaging through various rooms with hidden secrets, codes, and clues to try and find our way out. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall watching everyone frantically trying to figure out how each clue fit into different puzzles and yelling across rooms when they mastered a puzzle—it was hilarious! I’m happy to say, we found our way out of the rooms with 15 minutes to spare, which is not surprising considering all the brain power we had on our side. We ended the night at an Irish Pub for dinner where we socialized and laughed about our struggles in the Great Escape Room.

The next morning consisted of more computer and Westlaw training before the other three Summer Associates headed back to their offices around lunchtime. This was it—I was now on my own and ready to get to work! My first assignment was a research project on a breach of insurance contract issue assigned by Darryl Gavin, an Orlando partner. Throughout the rest of the week, I was given many more research projects and quickly realized the key to juggling multiple assignments is staying organized. Every attorney has been great at explaining issues thoroughly and emphasizing where my focus needs to be when researching or completing any project. Besides working on multiple assignments, I was able to break up my week by going to lunches with different attorneys, including Brett Carey, Cristina Cambo, Sally Culley, Steve Klein, and Patrick Delaney.  

Aside from the assignments and lunches, I was also able to attend my first deposition (well, almost). Thursday morning I rode with Orlando partner, Damien Orato, to Maitland for a deposition. Unfortunately, the witness didn’t show up. However, I knew I would have many more opportunities to see all the depositions my heart desires during the summer. By Friday, I had seven different projects from seven different attorneys and managed to complete three. If the first week is any indication of how the rest of my summer will unfold, I’m in for an unforgettable summer!