How I Made Partner: Latham & Watkins' Laura Washington
"You have to add value to a litigation or a deal in a unique way—whether by knowing an area of the law or the facts of a case better than anyone else, or having great rapport with clients."
June 10, 2019 at 04:04 PM
5 minute read
Practice area: Complex commercial litigation and entertainment sports and media litigation.
Law school and year of graduation: Georgetown University Law Center, 2009.
How long have you been at the firm? Since June 2015.
How long were you an associate at the firm? Two years.
Were you an associate at another firm before joining your present firm? Yes, I started my career as an associate at O'Melveny & Myers in December 2009. I left in June 2015 and came to Latham & Watkins.
What year did you make partner at your current firm? January 2018.
What's the biggest surprise you experienced in becoming partner? When I made partner, I received so many congratulations and heartfelt notes from staff, associates and my fellow partners throughout the firm. What struck me the most was the number of notes I received from female associates of color, some of whom I had never met, expressing how I had inspired them by making partner. When I was grinding to make partner, I could get so absorbed in the details of a specific matter or litigation that I could lose the perspective that associates look to their seniors—particularly partners—as a guide or model for their own careers. To realize I had become a model for others was truly humbling and surprising and incredibly meaningful.
What do you think was the deciding point for the firm in making you partner? Latham takes a holistic approach when selecting partners and considers many factors. I believe Latham considered my performance on individual matters, my ability to work with other partners and to supervise junior associates, my work on firm committees, my commitment to the firm's diversity efforts, and the strength of my practice and potential for growth.
Describe how you feel now about your career now that you've made partner. Pretty good. Making partner was a goal I was striving for since I was a junior associate, and when it happened it was an amazing feeling. But I see partnership as one step in a long career, one that allows me to have more control in shaping my career.
What's the key to successful business development in your opinion? Saying yes. We work long, hard hours. So when clients, potential clients, friends, work colleagues or acquaintances ask us to attend events at the end of a long day, it can be tempting to make excuses and say no. But saying yes and attending events is the key to successful business development—which is all about relationships. By going, not only are you maintaining and improving your relationships with current clients and colleagues, but you are generating opportunities to form relationships with individuals that may ultimately lead to new business.
What's been the biggest change, day-to-day, in your routine since becoming partner? The amount of emails and calls I get in a single day has significantly increased, especially after 9 a.m. In order to manage, I get into the office much earlier, well before 9 a.m. I find that I can be the most productive early in the day when it is quieter.
Who had the greatest influence in your career that helped propel you to partner? Marvin Putnam, a trial and litigation partner in the entertainment, sports and media practice. Marvin was previously a partner at O'Melveny & Myers when I started my career there. From my first year as an associate until now, Marvin has always supported my career and been my mentor and sponsor. When I was a junior associate, he had confidence in me and gave me opportunities that junior associates typically do not receive, like first chairing depositions, preparing CEOs for trial testimony, and participating in jury voir dire. His confidence has never wavered and continues now that I am his partner. The opportunities Marvin presented me as a junior associate were instrumental to my development into the lawyer I am today.
What's the best piece of advice you could give an associate who wants to make partner? Obviously, doing excellent work is a prerequisite for making partner. But all of the associates who are considered for partner do excellent work, so partnership requires more than that. You have to add value to a litigation or a deal in a unique way—whether by knowing an area of the law or the facts of a case better than anyone else or having a great rapport with clients. Your value proposition could be anything. Once you identify how you can add value in a unique way, use that skill to distinguish yourself from other associates. And make sure you have a mentor. Without a mentor—someone guiding your path to partnership, that path is nearly impossible to navigate. We all stand on someone else's shoulders. Make sure you have shoulders to stand on.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllInside Travers Smith's AI Training, Development Efforts
How I Made Public Office: 'Embrace Action Over Excessive Planning,' Says Jennifer Sellitti of the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender
How I Made Partner: 'Become Invaluable to Client Teams,' Says Michael Schapiro of Stradley Ronon
Trending Stories
- 1Infant Formula Judge Sanctions Kirkland's Jim Hurst: 'Overtly Crossed the Lines'
- 2Abbott, Mead Johnson Win Defense Verdict Over Preemie Infant Formula
- 3Guarantees Are Back, Whether Law Firms Want to Talk About Them or Not
- 4Trump Files $10B Suit Against CBS in Amarillo Federal Court
- 5Preparing Your Law Firm for 2025: Smart Ways to Embrace AI & Other Technologies
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250