Christopher’s Career Story

Kirkland has a great mix of different people and personalities. I work with great lawyers who value and nurture creativity. They have always encouraged me to think outside the box to solve problems. Our clients trust us with difficult cases, so a creative mindset is important to them. In my opinion, there’s no archetype of a Kirkland lawyer.

The level of agency and opportunity you get at Kirkland as an associate is unrivaled. As trite as it sounds, I love my job. I remember interviewing at other firms, and most emphasized that I shouldn’t expect to do arguments, depositions, etc., for a while. That’s not how it works at Kirkland.

In my opinion, confidence and training are the two most important aspects of an associate’s development. The open assignment system naturally furthers both. It gives associates early opportunities to take ownership over work and early practical opportunities. The result is confidence gained. You will then carry that confidence into your other cases, and it usually manifests in being more decisive and comfortable.

The open assignment system also gives you the agency to find people you connect with and who have actual incentive to mentor and develop you as a lawyer.

As an associate, you have the agency to take on (or not take on) certain cases. Baked into the system is an incentive to teach and develop new associates. My philosophy for navigating the open assignment system is to prioritize working with the lawyers who have taken an interest in my development. That’s naturally resulted in mentorship, which is what I think associates crave most. The open assignment system is a forum for you to go out and build those relationships; it’s embedded in the culture of the Firm.

I’ve had the privilege of being on winning jury trial teams (In re HIV and Constellation). Nothing quite compares to that. I also argued my first motion to dismiss in federal court as a very junior lawyer. I remember asking for the argument as a second-year because the partner had a conflict. He could have very easily said “no,” but he didn’t. He fought hard to convince the client to give me a shot, including setting up a moot to give the client comfort. He sat next to me during that moot, rooting me on. The wrinkle? He had never seen me argue anything before. Yet, he fought to get me that opportunity.

The argument gave me a ton of confidence. I was convinced I could do this job at a high level. That’s why I swear by Kirkland’s system — it gives young lawyers the very best opportunity to earn those early opportunities and gain that confidence.

The Kirkland Institute of Trial Advocacy (KITA) has been a great experience. It is critical to earning early opportunities. KITA gives associates a chance to get on their feet in front of partners. If you perform well, the partners you work with may offer you opportunities, advocate on your behalf or recommend you to other partners.

A big part of my day-to-day is managing junior associates. It’s been a real treat to advocate for them to get opportunities and to help prepare them for those opportunities. It’s a lot of fun to be a part of that journey.