After law school, Diane’s hope was to find at least one really good mentor to help guide her through the difficulties of transitioning from a student to a practicing lawyer. It quickly became clear during her summer at S&C that she’d have far more than one, a fact that has come in handy from almost her first day at the Firm.
As Diane explains, “from day one, the lawyers that I’ve worked with in California have pushed me to excel beyond what I thought I was capable of. They don’t just push you off the deep end and tell you to swim, though. There is always a huge support system there, ready and willing to offer guidance and support when needed. In only my third week at S&C, I had to interview a number of not-so-friendly witnesses who our client had recently fired. I was overwhelmed at first, having only ever seen one witness interview being done before (just hours before I was assigned to complete the rest of the interviews). Luckily my partner Adam Paris, who at the time was the most senior associate in the office, stepped in to give me substantive pointers and a much-needed pep talk. Knowing how much this helped me, I’ve tried to do the same for junior lawyers over the years. This job can be amazingly difficult at times. What makes it fun and interesting, even through the difficult times, is having such great colleagues and mentors.”