Summer Job Diaries: Rising 3L Strengthens Legal Skills in Summer at CK&E
Olivia Green ’20 is spending her summer as an associate for Conkle, Kremer & Engel, PLC. Green -- who pursuing a law career that will blend her loves of entertainment, arts and fashion -- is an active member in the LMU Loyola Law School community. The third-year student serves as the co-president of the Black Law Students Association (BLSA) among her many roles.
Q: How did you land your summer job?
A: I did some research on Conkle, Kremer & Engel once I found out they would be participating in the 2018 Law Firm Reception at Loyola Law School. All of the work they do in intellectual property and labor & employment law initially sparked my interest with the firm. At the reception, I met two associates from the firm who were both Loyola Law School alumni! Both were very enthusiastic about recruiting students from the law school, and one of them had a very similar legal background to mine. The very next day, I was asked to come in for a callback interview. At the end of my interview, I felt confident that a summer associate position at Conkle, Kremer & Engel would be an amazing learning experience.
Q: What is the most interesting part of your job?
A: The most interesting part of my job is the variety of work I am assigned to. On Day One, I was doing research on an employment issue, and the next day I was assisting an attorney in drafting a motion or responding to a subpoena. The firm also has clients across many different industries, including beauty and cosmetics, fashion and manufacturing. Working on cases across various industries kept my tasks exciting and new.
Q: What has been your most challenging assignment thus far?
A: My most challenging assignment was researching and developing a strategy for a case with peculiar facts and presenting what appears to be a novel legal issue. I had to interpret a statute that is very ambiguous, and I did not have case law to rely on in filling the gaps left open by the statute. I had to get really creative with my research and proposed a strategy in order to provide the attorneys with the best option for their client moving forward.
Q: What new legal skill have you acquired during your summer job?
A: Prior to my position, I had only done transactional and in-house work. In the six weeks that I spent at the firm, I’ve learned how to respond to subpoenas and sharpened my writing and research skills working in areas of law that are completely new to me.
Q: What bit of legal knowledge have you been able to display?
A: In one of my previous positions, I drafted privacy policies and ensured that the privacy policies were compliant with all of the recent privacy regulations that have been adopted. At Conkle, Kremer & Engel, I was asked about my knowledge of privacy policies as a client needed to develop an entirely new policy. Fortunately, I had enough knowledge about the relevant regulations and was able to contribute to the process of developing a new privacy policy. I had the opportunity to lead a lunch workshop about privacy policies for the attorneys at my firm!
Q: How has Loyola helped you map your career path?
A: I cannot say enough about how incredibly helpful and supportive my Career Development Office counselor, Jill Myers, has been for the last two years. Jill has been committed to helping me find opportunities that meet my interests and career goals and played a major role in helping me land my summer job after my first year of law school. Since then, I have continued to reach out to her for interview and application advice. I truly appreciate that I can count on her and the Career Development Office when I need to make decisions about legal opportunities. Also, Loyola Law School has a great alumni network – one of the main reason I’ve been presented with so many amazing opportunities.