My undergraduate degree is in Philosophy and I always enjoyed studying the big questions of life. I was somewhat frustrated by the ivory tower nature of pure academics. Had I pursued philosophy futher, it would have been difficult to use my profession in a tangible way, I likely would have ended up as a professor with little to no interaction with the public.
In law, I found the intersection of philosophy’s big questions with a real-world need for answers. I work in criminal and family law because these are the areas where people most commonly find themselves involved in the pursuit of fairness or justice.
I grew up in a very black and white world, but have learned that the world is mostly grey. The written law is very black and white, but the application of the law is very grey. I’ve learned that the story is always bigger than it first appears. Justice requires a big picture perspective, even when it has to be narrowly tailored to a particular issue or hearing.
I spent many years as a whitewater raft guide and working with youth as a teacher, coach and counselor. Those experiences allowed me to approach my work in the law with a much greater understanding of the ways that people exist in the real world. The first time that I made a jury laugh and realized that they were hungry for authentic stories of human experience, I realized that I could bring some humanity to the legal process and the search for justice.
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