Charles’ Career Story

Kirkland has a very different culture from that of other firms, and a different culture from what some people might expect. It's far more informal than I was expecting, and everyone is very energetic. Everyone who's here, especially if they've been here for a long time, really loves their jobs and the work they do. This creates an energy that trickles down from the top.

We have tons of resources and a big infrastructure, but there's still a small-group feeling. Being involved in deals where there might be six or seven different practice groups staffed on the same transaction provides an opportunity to connect with different people across the Firm.

I've developed personal relationships with my colleagues very quickly and consider many people at the Firm my friends. I like seeing my colleagues every day in the office. Having personal relationships underlying my professional relationships makes the whole experience a lot more enjoyable.

The people I work with and the freedom I'm given definitely keep me here. It's hard for me to imagine liking anywhere else as much as I like Kirkland.

I'm proud to work on the high-caliber matters that our clients bring to us. Since month one of my first year, I've worked on deals for top-tier sponsors. For example, I worked on the financing for the acquisition of athenahealth, which at the time was one of the largest private equity acquisitions in history.

During my first and second year, when the COVID-19 pandemic began, I had the opportunity to handle interesting liability management work. We worked with leading private equity clients and public company corporate clients on really complicated deals. Within six or seven months of starting here, I was right in the middle of it, working alongside very senior attorneys. It was an exciting way to start my career.

As soon as you show that you are capable of doing something, Kirkland does a great job of letting you run with it. I was given new opportunities with every deal, and the open assignment system allowed me to develop my professional skills in my practice group.

The open assignment system gave me the chance to work with different people and find what works for me. When I was a first-year, I worked with the same team for around six deals in a row. By the time I got to the fifth deal, the team knew exactly what I could do and challenged me to take on more complex work.

Within my first few years at Kirkland, I was the point person on transactions. I had a hand in every part of the deal, and that quickly lead to the development of my skills and professional growth. Now, I have a ton of project management skills that will be really useful moving forward.

I've developed ongoing relationships with client companies. I was surprised by how much of my time is spent working with CFOs, answering one-off questions and getting involved in the day-to-day operations of these companies. At a junior level, it's great experience to explain complicated contractual provisions to senior management.

I'm quite involved in our Pride Professional Network and have been since I was a first-year associate. I'm also actively involved in LGBTQ+ recruiting work. I was involved in the LGBTQ+ group in law school, so when I was looking at firms, this was something that was important to me. Right off the bat, it was clear this was also important to Kirkland. Having a group like this allows me to connect with people in other practice groups and make real relationships that are unrelated to the work I do every day.