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Articles by Renwei Chung
Dear Summer Law Associates And Clerks, Here Are 20 Sympathetic Intern Stories To Soothe Your Anxieties
“Fate fell short this time / Your smile fades in the summer / Place your hand in mine / I’ll leave when I wanna” — Blink 182 As the summer associate season comes to a close, I’d like to share some intern stories that everyone may be able to relate to. In past recruiting seasons, Above the Law has published some memorable law student interview stories as well as tips for how to survive OCI. And of course, we have a slew of subsequent summer associate stories in our archives.
The Defenestration Of Affirmative Action By SCOTUS Was Swift. What’s Next For The Legal Profession?
“Did you think we’d be fine? / Still got scars on my back from your knives / So don’t think it’s in the past / These kinds of wounds, they last and they last / Now, did you think it all through?
13 Inspirational Quotes From Attorney and Author Helen Wan And A Dozen Other Commencement Speakers
“Aren’t you sharp as a tack? You some type of lawyer or something? Somebody important or something? Well, I ain’t passed the bar, but I know a little bit.” — Jay-Z Last month, Above the Law highlighted some of the big names speaking at law school commencements this graduation season.
Celebrating The 25th Anniversary Of The Asian Pacific Interest Section And Honoring AAPI Heritage Month Original
“My grandma passed away at the top of last year / At the funeral drowning ’cause I couldn’t hold back tears / But after all that’s happened this past year / Part of me sees grace in the fact that she’s not here / As a grandson, this statement is a fact / No elderly should ever be victim of such a heinous attack / Prey on the weak; only cowards would take advantage of that / No more staying meek, it’s time to take a stand and react.” — MC Jin Last weekend, I had the opportunity to celebrate...
Cornell Law Alum And Novelist Susie Luo On AAPI Representation, Food As Love, And Writing
“For the violence of relationships / Hold your head up, don’t take that sh*t, run away from it / I should’ve ran away myself, the amount of pain I was dealt.” — Nas This week, I had the opportunity to interview Susie Luo, author of “Paper Names,” on the podcast “Charge the Wave.” Luo graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and Cornell Law School. She began her career in Biglaw and began writing her novel at night while working as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs.
Mike Levy, UT Law Alum And Texas Monthly Founder, On Luck, Relationships, And ‘Logan Roy Energy’
“Alright, already, the show goes on / All night, ’til the morning we dream so long / Anybody ever wonder, when they would see the sun up / Just remember when you come up, the show goes on.” — Lupe Fiasco, JR Get Money On Wednesday, the Penn Wharton Alumni Club of Austin hosted “Made in Austin: Business and Media Legends of Texas,” an event featuring Mike Levy and Evan Smith, founders of Texas Monthly and The Texas Tribune, respectively.
Ode To Michigan State University, MSU Law, And A Grieving Spartan Nation - Above the Law
“I fooled the crowd when I made it sound like I was more than ready / Strike up the band, deprive my sleep / Cause there’s no love like apathy / The bell that tolls rings loud enough that it should have woke us up.” — The Format First off, I don’t feel quite comfortable or equipped to write about last week’s shooting at Michigan State University. Nevertheless, I wanted to share the full transcript of Tom Izzo’s speech here as I haven’t seen it anywhere else online.
ChatGPT's First-Ever Rap On Why The Legal Industry Is Not Diverse - Above the Law
“Judge it how you judge it, say we going corporate / Nah, we just corner boys with the corner office / I’m at the cap table, what the splits is? / Not that cap table, boy, we live this.” — Jay Z Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve no doubt felt the wake from ChatGPT’s launch, landing, and exploration into our collective minds. In case you’ve been disassociated from society over the past few weeks (I wouldn’t blame you), here is a good ChatGPT primer and why it matters for lawyers.
ChatGPT's First-Ever Rap On Why The Legal Industry Is Not Diverse
5 hours ago Google is flailing. After years of singleminded worship of the false god Virtual Assistant, the company is rushing its AI strategy as its competitors join their hands and raise their pitchforks. The irony is it’s all happening because Google thought it had the pitchfork market cornered. See, in …
Attorneys Alyesha Asghar Dotson And Corinn Jackson On The Launch Of Littler's IE&D Playbook And The Building Of Recession-Proof Cultures - Above the Law
“Pay me in equity…” — Beyonce This week, I had the opportunity to catch up with Littler Mendelson shareholder Alyesha Asghar Dotson and principal Corinn Jackson. We discussed last month’s launch of Littler’s Inclusion, Equity & Diversity (IE&D) Playbook: a comprehensive collection of resources designed to help employers navigate the legal and practical considerations associated with IE&D programs.
Helen Wan, Attorney And Author Of 'The Partner Track,' On Bringing Her Biglaw Novel To Netflix - Above the Law
“And blame postmodern things I can’t relate / Like summer camp in coastal states / Like alcohol and coffee beans / Dance floors and magazines / I think it’s safe to say I’ve only got myself to blame.” — The Format This week, I had the opportunity to catch up with Helen Wan — an author, lawyer, and speaker on DEI and women in the workplace. Wan is a graduate of Amherst College and The University of Virginia School of Law.
Nicole Shanahan, Andrew Yang, Michelle Wu, Andrew Toy, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, and Payal Kadakia's Inaugural Gold Gala AAPI Advice - Above the Law
“Everything is gold, everything is equal / Posted on the porch just chilling, me and my people.” — Macklemore On Saturday, the 2022 A100 List — the annual award honoring the 100 most impactful Asians and Pacific Islanders — manifested into the first-ever Gold Gala hosted by Gold House, the leading AAPI changemaker community of cultural leaders, executives, and creatives.
Penn Law Alum Adam Pascarella On How To Craft A Nontraditional Legal Career You'll Love - Above the Law
Author Adam Pascarella (courtesy photo) “Haters want me clapped and chromed it ain’t easy / Cops wanna knock me, D.A. wanna box me in / But somehow, I beat them charges like Rocky” — Jay-Z This week, I had the opportunity to catch up with Adam Pascarella, the author of “Reversed in Part: 15 Law School Grads on Pursuing Non-Traditional Careers.” Adam attended undergrad at University of Michigan and earned his JD from the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.
One Year After The Atlanta AAPI Shooting, AAPI Women Are Being Hunted In The Streets - Above the Law
“A simple trip to the market, thought the streets were safe / Turned targets, I speak up for my people’s sake / From this pandemic, I’m hopeful that we’ll see escape / Until then, love’s the only vaccine for hate.” — MC Jin Last March, Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33; Paul Andre Michels, 54; Xiaojie Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; and Yong Ae Yue, 63, were gunned down in the “” — where six of the eight victims were Asian women.
How The Diversity Movement Is Helping Legal Organizations Leverage DEI Principles To Unlock Business Excellence
“The movement is a rhythm to us / Freedom is like religion to us / Justice is juxtapositionin’ us / Justice for all just ain’t specific enough.” — Common In the past few quarters, I’ve teamed up with The Diversity Movement (TDM) on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programming for The Society for Diversity, Duke University, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, and Morrisville and Durham Chamber of Commerce events.
Conferences And Networking For In-House Counsel - Are They Worth The Hustle And Bustle? (Featuring Jason Smith, State Bar Of Texas Corporate Counsel Chair) | Above the Law
“City talking, we taking notes / Tell them all to keep making posts / Wish he could, but he can’t get close / OG so proud of me that he choking up while he making toasts / I’m the type that you can’t control, said I would then I made it so.” — Jack Harlow Last week, I had the opportunity to attend HLTH 2021 in Boston and the 29th Annual SMU Corporate Counsel Symposium in Dallas. Attending HLTH for the first time — with 6,000 other attendees — was a bit overwhelming and exhausting.
Thanks To A Mandatory Retirement Policy, Skadden’s First Female M&A Partner Left For Mayer Brown, And Now She’s Ready For Much More
“Concrete jungle where dreams are made of / There’s nothing you can’t do / Now you’re in New York / These streets will make you feel brand new / Big lights will inspire you / Let’s hear it for New York…” — Alicia Keys & Jay-Z This week, I had the opportunity to chat with Martha McGarry, a renowned M&A lawyer who recently joined Mayer Brown LLP’s New York office from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.
SMU Dedman School Of Law Alum Hanna Kim, Punam Kaji, And Ann Chao Sheu On Launching The Podium, Representation, And AAPI Heritage Month
“A simple trip to the market, thought the streets were safe / Turned targets, I speak up for my people’s sake / From this pandemic, I’m hopeful that we’ll see escape / Until then, love’s the only vaccine for hate.” — MC Jin This week, I had the opportunity to catch up with Hanna Kim, Punam Kaji, and Ann Chao Sheu. Kim is an associate attorney at Zelle LLP. Kaji is assistant general counsel at Ben E. Keith Company. And Sheu is a former practicing attorney and current entrepreneur coach.
Yum - See Also | Above the Law
There’s No Such Thing As A Free Lunch: Unless you work at Ropes & Gray! Everything’s Bigger In Texas: Including tort liability after absolutely nutty abortion bill signed into law. Shocking No One, Republican Slept With A Child: But the Wyoming congressional hopeful thinks we should let it slide. Leverage: How many lawyers does it take to make $10 million?
So, How Many Of You Does A Biglaw Firm Need To Make $10 Million?
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! According data collected as part of the Am Law 100 ranking, at Wachtell, Biglaw’s most profitable firm, how many lawyers are needed to make $10 million? Hint: Compare with Gordon Rees, the least profitable on the Biglaw list, which needs 66.2 attorneys to make $10 million.. Sponsored Above the Law readers are offered 1 free CLE course each month, thanks to Lawline. See this month’s offering here.
Wrong Legal Jobs
Olga V. Mack is the CEO of Parley Pro, a next-generation contract management company that has pioneered online negotiation technology. Olga embraces legal innovation and had dedicated her career to improving and shaping the future of law. She is convinced that the legal profession will emerge even stronger, more resilient, and more inclusive than before by embracing technology.
Act Prudently For The Long Term
Litigation can take entirely too long, and cost entirely too much. Some efficiency and speed are good. But be careful: when making decisions, you may want to slow down a bit and consider how things will play out over time. I know a professional who does a great job and is one of those people who simply cannot stand to have an unanswered email in her inbox. This is, in a way, good. She follows what I’ve heard called the OHIO rule of email (Only Hit It Once).
3 Things An AAPI Attorney Learned From The Death Of His Father
Renwei Chung and his late father Ed. note: This post was originally published on May 15, 2015. In honor of AAPI Heritage and Brain Cancer Awareness Month, we have republished it. “Today my son said ‘dad, let go my hand’ / Reminded me one day he’s going to be his own man..” — J. Cole My father unexpectedly passed away in 2014. In January, he was diagnosed with brain cancer. Two months later, we elected for chemotherapy treatment. He was intravenously given the medicine on a Friday.
2020’s Billion-Dollar Biglaw Firms
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! According data collected as part of the Am Law 100 ranking, which Biglaw firms cracked $1 billion in gross revenue in 2020? Sponsored We want to know how tech is — or is not — reshaping the business of law. Take a quick survey! From Above the Law Hint: Last year, eight firms hit that benchmark. See the answer on the next page. Sponsored Above the Law readers are offered 1 free CLE course each month, thanks to Lawline.
Legal Writing: Write Like A Potato
Make sure that your roots are deep. Continuing on my recent theme of drawing life lessons from random flora and fauna, today I want to direct your attention to the potato, and why it should be your spirit vegetable whenever you do legal writing. Potatoes, of course, are one — and very possibly the — great root vegetable of world culture. They are a healthy staple food which, after originating in South America, has now spread throughout the world.
Remember: Charge Your Batteries
Olga V. Mack is the CEO of Parley Pro, a next-generation contract management company that has pioneered online negotiation technology. Olga embraces legal innovation and had dedicated her career to improving and shaping the future of law. She is convinced that the legal profession will emerge even stronger, more resilient, and more inclusive than before by embracing technology.
Attorneys Sara Hamilton And Angela Hsu On The Current Social Climate And The Creation Of The AAPI Crime Victims & Education Fund
“There are things that the homilies and hymns won’t teach you / My mother was a genius / My father commanded respect / When they died they left no instructions / Just a legacy to protect.” — Lin-Manuel Miranda This week, I had the opportunity to connect with Sara Hamilton and Angela Hsu.
Get To Voting, Folks!!! - See Also
Sponsored Learn the new standard for law firm connectivity, highlighting Client Intake, Internal Communications, Obtaining Client Signatures + Countersignatures, and 2-Way Text Messaging tools designed specifically… From MyCase
Lawyers’ Biggest Problem With COVID-19
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! According to a survey of the legal industry by ALM, what did lawyers report as their number one reason their mental health was worse because of COVID? Hint: Working from home (#3) and fear of losing their job (#5) were not nearly as popular as this answer, which over 34 percent said was an issue. See the answer on the next page. Topics Health & Wellness, Mental Health, Trivia Question of the Day, Unprecedented
Georgetown Alum And Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll Partner Victoria Nugent On Consumer Protections, Digital Markets, And 20 Years Of Practicing Law
Victoria Nugent, partner and co-chair of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC “Half a century almost, sliced the green like a lawnmower… / I’m coin-based, basically cryptocurrency Scarface / Join us, there’s got to be more of us.” — Nas This week, I had the opportunity to catch up with Victoria Nugent, who was recently appointed the co-chair of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC’s Consumer Protection Practice Group. It’s been almost four years to the day we last connected.
Why Are Lawyers Leaving Money On The Table?
Kira Systems CEO Noah Waisberg I last interviewed Kira Systems co-founder and CEO Noah Waisberg back in 2019 after Kira had just closed a $50 million round of venture funding. I caught up with him again following the publication of his new Wall Street Journal bestselling book, AI For Lawyers: How Artificial Intelligence is Adding Value, Amplifying Expertise, and Transforming Careers.
With Biometrics, Technology’s Doubled-Edged Nature Is On Full Display
In a discussion of biometrics, whether people react negatively or positively might depend on the stories they’ve heard. Did they read about the man in Russia who took out his garbage during a pandemic lockdown, only to have the police show up at his door 30 minutes later? The man had been identified using biometric facial recognition technology. Needless to say, some people might find the story alarming, a Big Brother scenario. But it’s hardly that simple.
In The Face Of Asian American Hate Crimes, Congressional Tri-Caucus Members Preach Unity - While Other Politicians Sow The Seeds Of Division
“Oh say, can you see – this is the American Dream / Young girl, hustling on the other side of the ocean / You can be anything at all in America / I say if you can’t see / Just close your eyes and breathe” — Rihanna In the past year, Asian Americans have been targeted in almost 3,800 hate incidents, with over two-thirds targeting women of Asian descent.
Morning Docket: 03.15.21
(Photo by Simon Dawson – WPA Pool/Getty Images) * Buckingham Palace is reportedly hiring a law firm to investigate Megan Markle’s bullying claims. Wonder what it would be like if the firm from Suits did this job… [Business Insider] * Google will face a lawsuit claiming that it still tracks users in Incognito Mode. [Verge] * The criminal trial of Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of Theranos, may be delayed due to her recently announced pregnancy.
Let’s Praise Some Law Firms - See Also
Who Doesn’t Love A Good Rating System?: We give our thoughts on the Davis Polk gift packages. It’s A Day That Ends In ‘Y’: So the Supreme Court is punishing immigrants arbitrarily. No, Take Your Time: The government needs a timeout because the Capitol Riot evidence is too overwhelming.
The Law Schools Making Big Employment Strides In 2020
Ed. Note: Welcome to our daily feature Trivia Question of the Day! Which five law schools are new to the Top 50 on ALM’s Go-To Law School Ranking, which measures the percentage of new graduates employed at the 100 largest law firms? Hint: 30 percent of 2020 graduates of the 50 Go-To Law Schools started their careers in Biglaw. See the answer on the next page.
COVID-19: One Year Later - How To Network And Thrive During A Crisis, Featuring Anjie Vichayanonda
#Networked: How 20 Women Lawyers Overcame the Confines of COVID-19 Social Distancing to Create Connections, Cultivate Community, & Build Businesses in the Midst of a Global Pandemic “Woke up feeling like I just might run for president / Even if there ain’t no precedent, switching up the messaging / I’m about to add a little estrogen.” — Lizzo This week, in honor of International Women’s Day, I had the opportunity to reconnect with Anjie Vichayanonda, Founder of Leg Up Legal, whose mission is...
Twitter Opposes ‘Tweet’ Trademark Application For Bird Food Company
Way back in the simpler time of 2010, Mike wrote up an interesting piece on Twitter’s trademark enforcement policies and how it handles third parties that interact with Twitter using Twitter-related terms. In short, Twitter built a reputation for itself in freely licensing these terms for use by third parties, believing that tools that made Twitter more useful were good for the platform overall.
Letters Of Recommendation: An Ethical Conundrum?
The Twitter discussion started with a question: “Serious question, so serious answers only. Student wants a rec letter to work for a Senator who voted not to certify Biden’s win. Do I write the letter?” Multiple parallel threads, interplaying and ignoring one another, simultaneously went off. The author of the question was careful to clarify that he has written letters for people he disagreed with before. This went beyond that.
Our Country Is Failing Its Asian American Senior Citizens - We Must Step Up To Protect Them
“Yeah, my intuition is telling me there’ll be better days / I sit in silence and find whenever I meditate / My fears alleviate, my tears evaporate / My faith don’t deviate, ideas don’t have a date / But see I’m growing and getting stronger with every breath.” — J. Cole The nightmare scenario is here. Another week in the pandemic, and another series of vicious attacks on unsuspecting Asian American senior citizens. Another broken hip, a half-dozen more stitches, trolley assaults, and subway attacks.
TSU Law Alum, Jackson Walker Partner, And DiversePro Founder Chevazz Brown On Clubhouse, Entrepreneurship, And Connecting Communities To Attorneys
Chevazz Brown, DiversePro Founder “What good is first class if my brothers can’t sit? / That’s my next mission, that’s why I can’t quit / Just like LeBron, get my brothers more chips.” — J. Cole This week, I had the opportunity to host a Clubhouse room with Chevazz Brown, TSU Thurgood Marshall School of Law alum, Jackson Walker partner, and DiversePro founder. It’s been fantastic witnessing the number of attorneys joining Clubhouse every week.
UNH Law Alum And Founder Anjie Vichayanonda On Social Media, Career Exploration, And Life-Long Relationships
Anjie Vichayanonda, Founder of Leg Up Legal “And I got pressure on me / Seven days a week, it’s game seven on me / Life will test you out, you live through that, that’s testimony” — Big Sean This week, I had the opportunity to catch up with Anjie Vichayanonda, Founder of Leg Up Legal, whose mission is to disrupt and revitalize the legal industry pipeline by providing meaningful mentorship to everyone.
Top 5 Tough-As-Nails List About The Late Notorious RBG
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Photo via Wikimedia Commons) “This album is dedicated to all the teachers that told me I’d never amount to nothing / To all the people that lived above the buildings that I was hustling in front of / Called the police on me when I was just trying to make some money to feed my daughter.” — Notorious B.I.G. On Friday, the indomitable SCOTUS Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, succumbed to metastatic pancreatic cancer.
Your Various Jobs and Entire Career Will Have An Expiration Date, But Your Everyday Actions Will Not - Practice Courage And Be Kind
“Working on the weekend like usual / Way off in the deep end like usual / They swear they passed us, they doing too much / Haven’t done my taxes, I’m too turned up.” — Drake For those in Biglaw or following the uber-competitive, but rather frictionless path to Biglaw — and have already secured an offer post-law school graduation — this article may not seem relevant to you. But sometime in the future, it may be something you’ll want to reference.
We Are Failing Women Of Color And It Is Fatal - A Discussion With Hampton, NCCU Law Alum Nickeyea Wilkinson and Howard, NYU Alum Ashlee Wisdom
“I’m going to keep on running because a winner don’t quit on themselves.” — Beyoncé The top issue for Super Tuesday voters this week in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and North Carolina was healthcare. In the legal profession specifically, and in our society generally, we don’t talk about our health issues enough, especially mental health. Yet it remains top of mind for so many of us.
From Brooklyn To Silicon Valley, Founder And Berkeley Law Alum Rukayatu Tijani Is Charting Her Own Course
“Give me my check, put some respect on my check / Or pay me in equity / Watch me reverse out of debt.” — Beyoncé This week, I had the opportunity to catch up with Rukayatu Tijani, a former Quinn Emanuel associate and recent law firm founder. I first met Tijani a few years ago while serving on the Pipeline to Practice Foundation board. Last November, Tijani decided to embark on the journey of entrepreneurship and founded Firm for the Culture.
20 Things Top Of Mind In 2020
“Come senators, congressmen, please heed the call / Don’t stand in the doorway, don’t block up the hall / For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled / The battle outside ragin’ will soon shake your windows and rattle your walls / For the times they are a-changin’.” — Bob Dylan The new year often makes one think about the last year, the present, and what the future holds.
During Final Exams, Law Students Should Heed The Words Of Legendary Basketball Coach Jim Valvano
Ed. note: This post was originally published on December 1, 2017. We have republished this article to bring peace of mind to our law school audience during this stressful period. “Without a wrinkle in today, cuz there’s no tomorrow/Just a picture perfect day that lasts a whole lifetime.” — Jay-Z It’s the final month of the year.
NAPABA Tackles Tough Issues And Continues To Inspire and Empower The Next Generation of Asian American Attorney Leaders
Natasha Quiroga, Thang Diep, Liliana Garces, Nicole Gon Ochi, and Alyson Tom (Photo by Renwei Chung) “My grandfather was a fire and brimstone preacher / But there are things that the homilies and hymns won’t teach you / My mother was a genius / My father commanded respect / When they died they left no instructions / Just a legacy to protect.” Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton) This week, the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) hosted their 31st National Convention in Austin,...
AILA President And Sidley Austin Partner Marketa Lindt On Nonprofits, Chicago, And Immigration (And Hamilton!)
Marketa Lindt (Photo via Sidley Austin) “We want our leaders to save the day / But we don’t get a say in what they trade away / We dream of a brand new start / But we dream in the dark for the most part / Dark as a tomb where it happens / I’ve got to be… in the room where it happens!”– Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton) On Wednesday, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights released its report, Trauma at the Border: The Human Cost of Inhumane Immigration Policies.
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