Top 5 Lessons for Women Law School Graduates

In the midst of law school graduation season, we thought it might be helpful to share our Top 5 Lessons for Women Law School Graduates. After three long years of law studies, grads are eager to complete the bar exam and start practicing. The start of your career is an exciting and anxious time, so we wanted to share with you lessons that can help women attorneys build a strong foundation for their careers. While bar studies will likely be taking up most of your time over the next few months, it’s helpful to read these lessons and keep them in mind now.

First, find a mentor. Finding a mentor that looks out for your interest and can help provide guidance as you begin your career is invaluable. A mentor shares their wisdom, experience, and insight, and can help younger lawyers navigate the various issues that come up in the practice of law. Mentors can provide support when you are making career choices or planning job transitions. Look for someone who is interested in investing in you and who will not only support you developing into a skilled lawyer, but also support you growing into a successful businessperson. These kinds of mentors teach you the ropes of business development and introduce you to others that can help you along the way. The moral of this lesson: pick a mentor wisely. 

Second, ask for an opportunity to take a leadership role on a case. Taking on leadership roles at work provides you with necessary experiences that are integral for young lawyers to grow into seasoned lawyers. It allows you to experience the decision-making processes that are involved with being the lead, and teaches you how to manage a case. The responsibility of being in charge of a case or an aspect of a case will help you develop your practice and prepare you for future leadership roles. It is critical that you put yourself out there to create these opportunities. Ask to be responsible for a dispositive motion, ask to take on a witness or two in trial, ask to handle an argument in court, or ask to take an important deposition in a matter. You have to be willing to take risks. Unfortunately, too many women hold themselves back, expecting that they must master a skill before they deserve a leadership opportunity. The truth is that creating and seizing on opportunities to lead is how greatness is achieved and how true mastery is developed. 

Third, it’s never too early to ask for business. If you have an interest in having your own practice, or being a partner at a law firm, it’s never too early to ask for business or to be open to receiving business. Developing the ability to generate your own business is the cornerstone of success in law – not only from a financial perspective but because it provides you leverage as you shape your career. Learning to ask for business and flexing that muscle early will help you cue those in your network to send you work (if applicable in your current role) from the get-go. I know this lesson is particularly tough for some people, but it is the one that you must practice, practice, practice. That is why starting early is so important. 

Fourth, invest in maintaining and building your relationships. The relationships you have built up until now, and the relationships you will be building in the future are valuable for a myriad of reasons: they help support you during difficult times, help you make professional connections as you further your career, and they could also be referral sources for your business. These relationships include your law school classmates, family, friends, and clients. The practice of law is extremely interconnected, and your former classmates could be counsel for a client or opposing party in the future, or could be a colleague at an organization you apply for a job at in the future. Keep in touch with your network and continue to grow it as you build your practice. Look around at your law school classmates as you are preparing to graduate and remember their names, faces, and most importantly get their contact information. I promise you it will serve you in the future. 

Fifth, get involved in the larger legal community. Getting involved in the larger legal community not only helps you build and maintain your relationships, but it also plugs you into the larger community and the sense of purpose that it provides. Voluntary bar associations abound, and can be focused on location, practice areas, and other commonalities or interests. Find the organizations that energize and support you and you will be thrilled to give back to them in turn. This is a place where you can meet mentors, find referrals, and build on the relationships you already have. 

We hope that sharing our Top 5 Lessons helps orient you as you start your career. The practice of law is challenging but rewarding, and you will need support and the help of others along the way. You will also need to take active steps yourself to develop as an attorney. After the bar exam, we hope that you will pull these out and think about what actions you can take in your career to help you forge your own path.

For now, focus on your studies and tuck these away until after the bar. You got this!