Noah’s Career Story

One thing that surprised me is the number of genuine friendships I’ve built with my colleagues in the Austin office. I came into the Firm expecting a collegial work environment, but I didn’t anticipate forming such close bonds with the people I work alongside every day.

The Austin office has a unique camaraderie. We celebrate each other’s wins, support one another through challenging matters and have built a real community that extends beyond the office walls.

Part of the reason I joined Kirkland was because of the Firm’s expanding consumer protection practice, and I have been fortunate enough to put that interest into action from day one. Almost immediately after joining, I was asked to help strategize and draft advocacy briefings for a highly complex Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigation. It was a valuable learning experience that gave me hands-on exposure to pre-enforcement advocacy work and equipped me with skills I have since applied to future advocacy briefs.

I’m currently representing a pro se prisoner in a Section 1983 civil rights case. After the case was initially dismissed, a group of summer associates (now associates) secured a reversal on appeal in the Fifth Circuit, and I’ve since joined to help lead the team as we prepare for trial. It’s been incredibly rewarding to work alongside talented colleagues at every level while advocating for a client who otherwise may not have had access to the legal representation they needed.

I’m most excited about the opportunity to deepen my client relationships and stay close to the novel legal issues emerging in the consumer protection space. With new privacy laws taking effect across the country and intensifying FTC scrutiny of artificial intelligence and data security practices, it’s an incredibly dynamic time to be working in this area, and I’m very eager to help clients navigate these developments.

Kirkland’s open assignment system has allowed me to drill down on the areas I want to focus on and take control of my professional development. Having experienced central staffing at another firm and seeing the pros and cons of both approaches, I vastly prefer Kirkland’s system. If you want to build experience in a particular area, you can seek out those opportunities and make it happen.