A strong network of faculty and adjunct professors whom he met both in law school and through the Silicon Flatirons Center helped Ethan Jeans听find his job as an associate at the Washington, D.C. telecommunications practice group, Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP. In his words, finding a job 鈥渢akes a village,鈥� and luckily, having cultivated a healthy network, he had a community of supporters to help him.
Tell us a little about your work. What do you do and what might a 鈥渢ypical鈥� work day look like?
I am a first-year associate in the telecommunications practice group at Wilkinson Barker听Knauer鈥檚听D.C. office.听
Working at a firm with听44听partners and only seven other associates, there (blissfully) haven't been many "typical" work days. After downing as much espresso as humanly possible and (occasionally) remembering to tie my shoes, on听any given day I might help听write a policy paper addressing spectrum听availability听for 5G telephony, research and write summaries of FCC Orders, attend a Hill hearing, sift through state laws on wireless infrastructure siting, or cite check a Supreme听Court听amicus brief. 听Our more senior associates have developed clients of their own and tend to have more focused听practices, but as a newcomer I'm given opportunities (as the firm requires) to move between different teams, developing a greater understanding of the field and my own interests along the way. 听It鈥檚 a bit like drinking听through听a fire hose some weeks, but it鈥檚 never dull!
How did you find your job?
Short answer?听听Two words: 鈥淪ilicon Flatirons.鈥�
Long answer:听I was first introduced to one of WBK鈥檚 partners while volunteering for the Colorado Technology Law Journal (CTLJ) at a conference.听听Nothing big鈥擨 certainly didn鈥檛 make any asks鈥攂ut it let me show earnest excitement about the field without looking cheap or sycophantic.听听Then, while working in D.C. as a Hatfield Scholar my 2L summer, I got to know more members of the firm over coffee and drinks, talking about shared interests like the NBA and science fiction.听One of my classes my 3L year was taught by an adjunct professor who, coincidentally, was also a partner at the firm. Additionally, I went to a pair of telecommunications moot court competitions as a member of Barrister鈥檚 Council and, also coincidentally, ended up arguing in front of firm personnel.
In hindsight, it maps neatly, but at the time, I was just trying to take advantage of as many opportunities as possible.听听When the time came to actually interview, the firm already knew me and I already knew them鈥攁nd from those personal relationships, I knew听飞丑测听I wanted to work there.
How did Colorado Law help you in your job search?
It鈥檚 less that Colorado Law 鈥渉elped鈥� with my job search, and more that attending 抖阴旅行射听飞补蝉听my job search in and of itself.听听As I said, the circumstances that led me to Wilkinson all started with opportunities available through the Silicon Flatirons Center.听Beyond that, Professor Bauer talked me off a ledge and helped me prepare for the (alien) process of interviewing at a law firm; Professor Griffin proofread multiple cover letters for me; the CTLJ advisors鈥擯rofessors Reid,听Surden, Ohm, and especially Dean Weiser鈥攚ent to bat for me, offering coaching and听recommendations. 听It takes a village, and I had one standing right behind me.
What skills do you utilize on a daily basis and how did your experiences or courses at Colorado Law help you develop these skills?
My most-used daily skill?听Terseness.
I so badly want to leave the answer there.听听Really, it all boils down to legal writing; concise, clearly presented ideas are our stock and trade.听听Colorado Law helped me kill two birds with one stone by offering opportunities to develop doctrinal legal knowledge and writing skills simultaneously鈥攄rafting a student note for the journal, working for clients in the Technology Law and Policy Clinic, taking classes听with expanded written elements like Telecommunications Law, even听banging out briefs for moot court.听 As a subpoint, I'd add that all of my writing as an attorney has been collaborative in some form鈥攁s was every experience and course听mentioned prior. 听
Please talk a little about 鈥減eople skills鈥� and networking specifically.听 How has your professional network made a difference in your career?
The "1L-attending-orientation" part of me still cringes at how transactional 鈥渘etworking鈥� sounds. Reality is, however, every opportunity I鈥檝e had to date came in some unexpected fashion out of my network;听it's just a matter of scoping the word to match your strengths. 听I鈥檒l never be Cocktail Party King, so my focus as a student was on the long play鈥攂uilding a concentrated network of meaningful relationships through venues where it's possible to flash a little substance: through internships, through time in a clinic, through public-facing听student organizations like the Colorado Technology Law Journal and Barrister鈥檚 Council. Admittedly, my career so far has been short (to put it kindly), but it's hinged entirely on having听meaningful relationships with mentors, connecting "vertically" with Colorado Law alumni who share similar interests, and connecting "horizontally" with peers who are also nuts about the same topics.听So far, no one's shivved me with a rusty knife.
What advice would you give to current students with respect to finding a job?
Volunteer for every event under the sun, and show up having done your homework, with three talking points in hand, and an open mind.听听As students, we might not offer value through expertise (yet)鈥攂ut we have energy, and we have time.听Try as many听extracurriculars听as possible; no one activity is for everyone, so sample your heart out until you听find听the perfect fit, then pour yourself into it.听听Be passionate, and build your resume to prove your dedication鈥攖hat beats having a great handshake with nothing to back it up any day.听听Find opportunities to hone your writing every semester, whether inside or outside the classroom. Having a crisp, succinct writing sample is compelling.听听Most of all, don鈥檛 give into the stress-driven feedback loop of measuring yourself against your peers.听听For every student at Colorado Law, there are a dozen different possible endgames for a great career.听听Focus on yourself, cheer your classmates on, and have faith that if you really push, you鈥檒l succeed. You wouldn鈥檛 have gotten in otherwise!
If you were to recommend Colorado Law to a potential law student, what would you say?
The obvious/鈥渃lassic鈥� metrics鈥攐ur killer journals, our enormous clinical program, the wide range of summer experiences, the breadth and depth of our alumni program nationwide, our employment and salary numbers鈥攕peak for themselves.听听The real value add, the thing that doesn鈥檛 show up on paper, is our culture. When my laptop died halfway through second semester my 1L year, the number of classmates who sent me unsolicited copies of their notes was overwhelming. I鈥檒l use CTLJ as an example because it鈥檚 near and dear to my heart鈥攆or Volume听13 alone, we had members inviting one another to their weddings, dressing toddlers in onesies bearing our logo, holding a sci-fi book club,听attending听happy hours and barbecues together, holding pie-baking days and movie marathons. 听The听only听downside to taking a job in Washington? 听Being 1500 miles away from the nest.
Why did you choose Colorado Law?
Hopefully, by this point, my answer鈥檚 obvious.听听The education and community are first-rate, and you graduate a member of a tradition worth belonging to and taking pride in.