My fourth week with Rumberger provided such great learning experiences as a law student. This week, I was able to submit three projects, attend a deposition, sit in on some meetings, and complete my motion for the Summer Associate Writing Competition!
My mentor, Fred Clarke, took me to depositions of a plaintiff and a witness in one of the cases he is handling. It was really great to see Fred’s style in taking depositions and learn some valuable tips from him about the litigation and discovery process. I appreciate the time he took to explain the case to me, as well as give me some advice on deposition taking.
I also worked on and submitted some research projects and even started working on a Motion to Compel assigned to me by partner Meredith Lees. I haven’t written a Motion to Compel before, so I really enjoyed getting familiar with this area of legal writing. Meredith gave me some great feedback, which was very encouraging and made me so excited to continue learning at Rumberger.
On Wednesday, I sat in on a presentation given by Bud Kirk, a founding partner of the firm, via Zoom. He shared some of his winning strategies and stories about jury selection, and I was able to take some great notes throughout the presentation. I am so grateful to have heard him speak and be invited to attend.
On Thursday, the summer associates attended a seminar with Orlando partner Dan Gerber about motion practice, which was very insightful. Dan gave great advice, especially regarding motion hearings for young attorneys, and was so helpful in answering some questions I had at the end of the seminar. The seminars set up by Rumberger for the summer associates have been really great experiences and part of what makes this summer associate program so unique. After every seminar, I feel more and more prepared to take on life as an attorney after law school.
I also attended a strategy meeting in the Birmingham office for one of the firm’s clients. It was awesome to discuss client desires and talk about the best ways to meet client goals. Sitting in on this meeting was a really cool experience!
To round out the week, partner Jimmy Walsh took me to lunch on Friday to discuss how I am doing so far this summer and the plans I have for my career in the future. It’s always a pleasure speaking with Jimmy. I feel so welcomed by his genuine interest in my professional development.
Additionally, I finished my motion for the writing competition on Friday. I was both nervous and excited writing this motion, as it concerned topics I haven’t encountered yet. However, by the end of writing the motion, I was proud of the work I had done and the new legal areas I learned about. I am so thankful for the attorneys at Rumberger for putting together the writing competition for us as it has definitely expanded my knowledge and skills.
Here‘s to a great Week 4! I can’t wait to see what Week 5 brings!
