The next day began with a delicious breakfast with the attorneys and staff in the Orlando office, which was followed with a packed schedule of orientation activities! After the seminars and workshops finished for the day, the summer associates walked with a group of attorneys over to the Great Escape Experience, where we were not only able to break out, but also set a record for a group of our size with over 17 minutes remaining! It was everyone’s first time doing an escape room too! Afterwards, we went next door to the Irish Pub and had great dinner while rehashing some of the day’s events.

Wednesday was a half day of orientation where we finished our training on the computer, learned about the firm’s Westlaw usage, and watched EEO/HIPAA videos. After lunch, sadly it was time for all of the summer associates to head back to their respective offices. When I arrived at the Tampa office, I was shown to my office and was reintroduced to the attorneys and staff. I was told no one would have any assignments for me until tomorrow so I should get settled in and ready to work!

On Thursday morning, I received my first official assignment—to research whether an order to remand a case back to state court could be appealed, if it was remanded on the grounds the attorneys anticipated it would be. Shortly after receiving this assignment, I was given a list of other assignments that needed to be completed; luckily all had various deadlines! I liked having multiple assignments because I found strictly researching one issue would sometimes lead me down a rabbit hole, and I needed to switch to another topic for a few hours to keep my brain fresh and let my subconscious mull over what I’d been reading. Having numerous assignments also allowed me to get an early start on learning to manage my time and prioritize what needed attention first in order to stay on top of my work and ahead of the deadlines! Also, I called into the Orlando office to learn the details of the Writing Assignment the summer associates were given during orientation. This is the first year the program has included a writing competition such as this, so the guidelines were given so we knew what was expected of us writing this motion and memorandum! The attorneys also took me out to lunch to welcome me, and it was great to be able to get to know everyone outside of the office setting.

On Friday, I continued to work on the assignments I’d started the day before, and was lucky with another lunch out with the attorneys and the firm’s COO, Joe Mule—I was told back to back lunches were rare, so I made sure to savor them! Overall, my first week was jam-packed with excitement, from orientation in Orlando to being given my first assignments in Tampa, and I can’t wait to see how the summer unfolds and what week two will bring!