1. Create a Document: Label sections for the areas of law you're interested in (e.g., Criminal, Family, Personal Injury, Corporate). Under each section, include checklist boxes to track the firms you've contacted.
2. Search for Firms: Use Google Maps to find nearby firms that match your interests. Focus on one practice area at a time to stay organized. Visit firm websites and look for an “info” email. These typically go to the firm receptionist and provide a direct link to office staff. Avoid confusing an “info” email with an inquiry email, which is often a chat box for client inquiries.
3. Document Your Findings: Add each firm’s name, email, and one or two specializations to your document next to the corresponding checkbox. Aim to find at least 15 firm administrative emails but don’t spend too much time searching if one isn’t readily available.
4. Prepare to Reach Out: Attach your resume, and send your letter of interest to the emails you've collected. Refer to the photo for my letter of interest template.
I’m sharing this information because I know it can help, or at the very least, provide more flexibility in your internship and career pursuits. While I can’t guarantee specific outcomes, being upfront about that is in your best interest. I believe the opportunities we encounter come from God and align with what is meant for us in their proper time. My law school journey has been a spiritual one, and following these steps has guided me to spaces He intended for me. I hope these steps bring the same, if not greater, blessings to each of you.
A few months ago, someone very important to me, Dr. Charles “Chuck” Moran, passed away. Dr. Moran was a political science professor and my advisor when I was a student at Rockhurst University (the Jesuit college in Kansas City). My first meeting with him, which I still remember, was to set my sophomore year course schedule. Dr. Moran went on to teach me a handful of times and chaperoned student trips abroad to China, Israel, Hong Kong, and Russia. I became friends with his daughter, who was also a Rockhurst student. Years later, I found myself in a business management job I had little affection for (I was the Colorado state manager for an auto parts company – don’t ask). Dr. Moran, now “Chuck” to me, encouraged me to return to school and earn my doctorate. A few years after he hired me as a faculty member at Rockhurst. During my first handful of years as an academic he was very instrumental to my learning how to teach, advise, research, [and deal with administration], all while completing my dissertation. Sometimes you need someone in your life to give you some direction and wisdom. No one has all the answers, or even many of them, I find out as I get older. Sometimes we find ourselves not having an answer at all.
In those moments the power of a mentor can shine through brightly. As the benefactor of not just Chuck’s time and effort, but the mentoring of at least a handful of other people, I’ve found my own way in life. I do my best to pay this forward to others I interact with, especially young people. I have a hunch that others who take on the mentor role have similar experiences where the roles were reversed.
Recognizing the potency of mentorship, Loyola Pre-Law is fostering the creation of mentoring networks. If you keep up with this newsletter, you know the Pre-Law Society has begun a peer mentoring program. If you haven’t signed up for that I suggest you reach out to group President Liz Kosik for more information. Similarly, the Pre-Law Advisory Board will soon begin a mentoring program that will pair practicing lawyers with Loyola students. One thing I appreciate about my job is the tremendous enthusiasm alumni have to work with current students, and we’re going to leverage that to your benefit in the months ahead. Stay tuned for more information and an email from me calling for mentees.
Much of the journey to a law career is individual effort, but even viewed in that light, you’ll find you can travel further and faster with some assistance. This issue of the newsletter offers the thoughtfulness of Pre-Law Advisory Board member James Denvil who wonderfully describes his career in the law as an increase in agency. Check that article out to see what he means. The equally insightful interview with recent speaker James Peabody-Harrington (’17) begins with his successful plan to improve his LSAT score. You should also take a moment and read an email I recently received from Ryan Brooks (’22). I asked Ryan for permission to share it here so you can get a sense of what a law student’s schedule looks like. Ryan will be speaking here in the spring and maybe someone will ask him how often he wakes up at 1:00 am.
Finally, if you have an idea for an interview subject, such as an internship supervisor or family member who is an attorney, drop us a line. I’m sure others would benefit from your interview of them. Enjoy the articles, be on the lookout for good mentors, and Happy Thanksgiving! This one is for you Dr. Moran.
Matt Beverlin
Loyola Pre-Law Advisor
Political Science Department
James Denvil is counsel in the Privacy and Cybersecurity group at Hogan Lovells, a global law firm. He holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Virginia Commonwealth University, a Master’s in Philosophy from Bowling Green State University, and a Master’s in Acting from the University of Alabama. Before law, James taught ethics, logic, and theater and worked as a professional actor. He earned his J.D. from the University of Baltimore in 2012. James specializes in global privacy compliance, cybersecurity, and public policy and offers pro bono legal services to immigrants.
Did you have any role models or mentors who influenced your decision to become a lawyer? If so, how did they impact your journey?
I went to law school late in my life, I was 38 when I started law school. I had some friends who were lawyers, three of my closest friends were lawyers at the time. Also, a father of a good friend of mine has a law degree but doesn’t practice law; he was a big mentor for me going through, helping me make decisions, and encouraging me to do the work. Having close friends of mine who were lawyers was helpful, but also someone outside of it is helpful, for their perspective. It’s useful to have someone you can gripe to, who will maybe lovingly tell you to get over it, it is a useful thing if you’re doing anything challenging.
What motivated you to transition from a career in acting and academia to law, particularly in the field of privacy and cybersecurity?
The short answer is that I wanted some more security and agency in my professional life. In both academia and the arts, particularly in theater, where it's a collaborative art form, you don’t have a lot of choices of where your next gig is going to be and where you’re going to work. The choices can be slim, because it's going to be up to the whims of what school wants to hire you and what shows a theater is putting on. The core thing is that I wanted more stability, and agency would allow me to do the things that I wanted to do.
How did you choose your particular area of law? What drew you to that specialty?
In some ways what you’re going to do is partially going to be driven by what you're passionate about, what you’re good at, your skill set. Sometimes it's more about your skill set than your passion. Typically, you’ll be skilled at things you at least somewhat like, even if it’s not your passion. The market drives you to where you want to be. I went to law school thinking I would be a litigator because of my acting background, and I just thought that was the natural fit. I was open to opportunities in front of me, and there was a paid internship advertised in my first year of law school- most internships were not paid- so that was my kind of internship. It was at the department of homeland security and the privacy office. I just found it to be interesting, and that's when I decided I wanted to do this area of law. I wanted to do it for two reasons: I saw that there weren't a lot of people who were doing it, and I thought it was going to be a big area. I liked it, I liked the people who were doing it. I think that one way to figure out what you want to do is if you find something that looks interesting, looks like it might really take off, and when you look around you the room isn’t that full, that's probably a great area to plan.
What skills or qualities do you believe are essential for success in your field of law, and how did you develop them?
Critical thinking and performance is really what it is. In most of the challenges in law where you’re working on cutting issues, whether it be privacy, cybersecurity, AI, energy etc., the law’s unsettled. You either got legacy laws that are way out of date, or you’re getting new frameworks and require some creativity and critical thinking to be able to address them. When I say performance, what I really mean is being somewhat of a storyteller. As an attorney, I find myself being a storyteller almost all the time. It could be in this interview right now, teaching an associate how to do something, dealing with a client, I need to be able to tell them the story of how things are gonna go and how I can help them. If I'm going to court for my pro bono clients and I’m trying to tell the judge a story, if I’m going to the Hill to talk to some Senators or Leg staff about some regulations, I have to tell them a story. Being an effective communicator and critical thinking is crucial. The first and most important things are being right and making sure people believe you’re right. People want attorneys who instill confidence, even if you’re nervous on the inside.
What challenges did you encounter while deciding to enter the legal profession, and how did you overcome them?
One was deciding where to go. I had a clear goal; I wanted to get a job at a big firm in DC. And then I had to choose between a bunch of different law schools in this area, and I ended up choosing the University of Baltimore, which created a challenge because I needed to be able to demonstrate to these law firms why they shouldn’t overlook a graduate from University of Baltimore, because they weren’t in the top 100. So, if you’re trying to get a job at a law firm where they typically hire T20 grads, how do you address that. The greatest challenge of going into law school and big law is the competitive environment. I think most of the competition is being driven from within and the need to demonstrate your worth and value and knowing how you’re measured by how much work you can get done. Learning how to manage my own internal engine was the biggest challenge. Being able to recognize that it's a marathon, not a sprint and recognize I needed to dedicate enough time to myself and the people around me other than just these things (law school).
What advice would you give to someone considering a career in law, especially regarding choosing a specialty and navigating the legal landscape?
(In regard to being unsure about what kind of law you want to pursue) Worry about it enough to keep looking, but don’t get stressed out about it. If you think three years ago, people didn’t think AI would be a huge thing but then ChatGPT came out and everyone's either excited or panicked. The world is going to change so much, just keep looking, but don’t panic. Recognize that as a lawyer, you’re going to have to be an entrepreneur to some degree because things are changing. At the end of the day, the legal profession is committing to resolving disputes between people in ways that hopefully doesn't end up in unfortunate conflict. We are part of this institution that's supposed to keep everyone unified, together, and safe. It’s a group enterprise, so networking, being respectful, and recognizing that it’s an important job that keeps things together.
Interview with Jimmy Peabody Harrington
Jimmy is a labor and employment attorney at Miles & Stockbridge in Baltimore. He advises businesses on workplace legal challenges and represents employers in cases involving discrimination, harassment, contract disputes, and wrongful discharge. He graduated from the University of Maryland School of Law in 2021 and Loyola University Maryland in 2017. He interned for Judge Joseph M. Getty and clerked for Judge Alison L. Asti.
You took the LSAT three times, with a significant improvement in score. What study methods or strategies did you find most effective during your second round of preparation?
I didn’t do any of the programs where you pay. When I took the LSAT it was still a hard copy that they gave you and you had a scantron you had to fill out. What I did was buy test booklets of prior tests off either Amazon or LSAC. I think I bought 25-30 of the previous tests they had and just sat down and took them. I calendared out when I would take them and grade them. It was after I graduated from undergrad at Loyola and started work. I knew I had signed up to take the LSAT in September and it was the middle of July, so I scheduled out when I would take tests, between 2-3 tests a week for the next 8 or 10 weeks until the exam. I would take them as realistically as I could, set a timer and not take breaks to check my phone, I would sit down and take the full test as if it were being proctored. I would also spend time going back through it and figuring out what tripped me up on a specific question. As I took the tests, I could see improvements in how I was doing. I think it was an 8–10-point jump compared to how I did on the first exam.
You mentioned feeling "imposter syndrome" during your internship at the MD Supreme Court. How did you overcome that feeling, and what advice do you have for others who might face it in high-pressure environments?
It was very demanding work wise, and I didn’t have experience. I didn’t grow up around judges or working for any lawyers other than my brief experience between undergrad and law school. There was a lot expected of me, it’s not like it was routine legal questions, it was nuanced and intimidating. A big thing that ended up getting me through was getting advice from the law clerks who were there at the time. They said that when you start a new job, a lot of places aren’t going to be hiring you because they think that you’re going to hit the ground at 100mph on day one. A lot of people in those situations just expect you to put your best foot forward and ask lots of questions, take your work seriously, and just spend time trying to do the right things. I know a lot of people that talk about imposter syndrome when starting law school, and I think you have to always remember that your situation is what got you here. If you have the tools to get you this opportunity, you should continue to use those tools to do well.
You mentioned the transition from undergrad to law school being very demanding. What strategies did you use to manage your time and stay disciplined during your first year?
I tried to treat it like a job. I discussed how in undergrad you have much more of a fluid schedule, and the demands are definitely different. In law school I tried to treat it like a 9-5 job, but you still have some control over your schedule and workload. For example, if you’re someone who likes to get up earlier, do more work in the morning, or if you work better at night you can stay up reading. For me, I defined a set schedule every day that worked and didn’t change things up. You know, in undergrad there were some days where I had classes late at night and some early; So, at least your first year of law school you have a consistent class schedule. Of course, you have to make changes every now and then but treating it like a job but continuing to use that routine throughout the year really helped.
What was the most challenging part of your 1L year at UMD? Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently?
Generally, the most challenging part is the teaching method- the Socratic method. Professors really expect you to not just have read the material but also engaged and considered it before class. They’re not teaching you as much but challenging you to teach yourself in some ways. To have that all build up throughout the course of the semester, you have no grades, so you really have no way to gauge how you’re doing with the material (from an academic standpoint). What I would have liked to do more was go to office hours throughout the course of the year/semester. Professors really encourage you to do that because it’s a really good way to check how you’re digesting the material and how you're doing with the topics. There's so much to digest and engage with. If you don’t go and approach them during office hours, no one's going to hold you responsible for not doing that. It’s not only a good way to check in on how you’re doing with the material, but it’s also a good way to develop relationships with professors, so when down the line you have a resource for letters of recommendations.
Having worked in both small and large firms, how did those environments differ, and what aspects of your current firm’s culture do you enjoy the most?
There are great things in each type of firm. At the firm I started out at, it was considered a small sized firm. In what they lack in resources, they make up for opportunity for, especially, younger attorneys or even law clerks where in a different situation they would not be given as much meaningful work. The two small firms I worked at in law school, but within a week of working there I got my cases, and I was working them up. There was partner supervision, but it was very much like going off the deep end. It obviously came with failure at times, but it also came with a lot of raw opportunities and experience that you don’t get at a bigger firm where they’re spending a lot more time on getting associate's up and running with the material and you're doing a lot more base level things. I was fortunate when I made the transition to Miles, which is a bigger firm, I was able to keep a lot of the small firm experience but also have the sophistication of being at a big firm. You know, we have more resources, staff, we have a library where we can ask library staff about some obscure research questions. With it being a larger firm, we’re considered a full-service firm, so for any of our clients, we have an attorney at the firm who should be able to help them. Opposed to a smaller firm where they are more specialized which can be a really good thing.
