As prospective lawyers working our way through law school, we had a variety of visions for our legal futures. For many, this path included this sequence of events: getting a judicial clerkship, followed by a great summer associate spot at a top-tier firm, and then a job offer as an associate at a firm with a solid partnership track. The vision culminates on the day you become partner.

Of course, a legal career at a firm does not reach the pinnacle there, but for a law firm associate who has dreamt of this day since law school, it is one grand, affirming milestone.