Summer Programs: St. Louis, MO
Day in the Life of a Summer Associate
By Ernesto Segura
Summer Associate:
2006 and 2007
The Summer Associate program at Husch Blackwell Sanders rewards law students who are motivated to have a summer full of unequaled professional and personal growth. The structure of the program itself encourages a customized experience. Are you interested in being part of an environmental law case? Just ask. Do you want to see a deposition in a medical malpractice lawsuit? No problem. Are you eager to head to court to watch arguments on a motion? Consider it done. This sort of flexibility ensures that a law student who knows the area of law in which he wants to practice and a law student still searching for his niche can both have productive, enjoyable summers.
To aid in customizing the program to your needs, each Summer Associate is assigned to an attorney who serves as a formal advisor. Our advisors are more than happy to discuss life as a lawyer, to edit a research memo, or to help with just about anything else. Actually, the Husch Blackwell Sanders experience turns nearly every attorney you meet into an informal advisor. We receive feedback from the attorneys we work with, and periodic evaluations provide us the chance to chart our progress and the chance to offer suggestions as to how the program can be better suited to our needs. The attorneys treat you as a colleague and are happy to involve you in as much as they can.
For example, consider a fairly representative day that I had last July. I arrived at the office around 8 am and immediately checked emails, voicemails, and my notes on what I needed to be working on that day. Typically, Summer Associates have multiple projects in the works, so prioritization is vital. It's not unusual to have a few assignments due that week along with 2 or 3 longer term projects on your desk. In my email that morning was a request from an attorney to visit with her about a real estate development deal in Georgia on which we were collaborating.
I headed down to brief her on my research and my thoughts on the best strategy for our client (the developer). Within moments, I was on a conference call with our client and their people on the ground in Atlanta. The attorney then had me present the ideas we had just discussed. This sort of integration into the real-life action of an attorney is exactly what I wanted from my summer, and the attorney was happy to have me actively participate, rather than just sit there and listen.
After the call, I returned to my desk eager to finish a research memo on the viability of a non-compete clause in an employment contract dispute. I finished my draft and sent a copy to my advisor and another Summer Associate for their thoughts. They were happy to offer suggestions to me before I delivered my final draft to the assigning attorney.
Husch Blackwell Sanders offers the Summer Associates the chance to spend their lunch hour with senior Partners and newer Associates from each of the firm's practice groups. The attorneys offer an overview of their practice and are happy to answer any questions we may have. At these lunch programs, we also learn about the Pro Bono work that Husch Blackwell Sanders values, the community involvement the firm encourages, and occasionally we have the chance to sit in on insightful CLE sessions with other attorneys. On days when there are no set lunch plans, attorneys eager to meet the Summer Associates will often invite you to one of Clayton's great restaurants. It is also not uncommon for you to come back from these lunch outings with new plans to join the attorney in court or at a deal closing. On this particular day in July, some other Summer Associates and I decide to keep it simple and just head out for a quick lunch.
Returning to the office after lunch is a good time to reset your schedule for the day. Rarely does your initial plan remain unchanged by the excitement of the day. Having turned in my memo on the contract case, I could start my next projects: a product liability case in Colorado and an environmental clean-up case in upstate New York. After meeting with the assigning attorneys on these new projects, I took the long way back to my office and said hello to some other Summer Associates. Each Summer Associate class is a dynamic group, full of people with unique backgrounds and personalities. I always tried to find time in my day to stop by and say hello to my new friends. Along the way one of the Summer Associates asked if I would edit a memo for her. I agreed and spent a few minutes back at my desk helping her out. I finished my afternoon doing more research on the two new projects and reading some background for a deposition that an attorney stopped by to invite me to the next day.
The fun rarely ends at the end of the work day, though. The Summer Associate program includes a variety of after-work functions, as well. Whether the schedule includes a happy hour, a bowling tournament, Cardinals games in the firm's luxury suite, or a riverboat cruise, Husch Blackwell Sanders offers us social events that allow us to interact with our fellow Summer Associates and the attorneys outside of the office. This particular night had us competing against a group of Summer Associates from one of the other large firms in a softball game. After the game, the two teams swap stories about life as a Summer Associate. Hearing the other team talk about their experiences made me smile and appreciate the unique opportunity I found at Husch Blackwell Sanders. The Husch Blackwell Sanders Summer Associate program truly is unparalleled in its ability to encourage your personal and professional growth throughout a summer that you will never forget.