It was the best of times; it was . . . well, the best of times. My first week at Rumberger was a blast. The summer associates from RK’s various offices spent the first two days in training—rigorous training. The first day of training prepared us for one of the more technical aspects of practice: timekeeping. Associate Brett Carey, one of my mentors for the summer, led a timekeeping seminar and delineated protocols and best practices. After this, partner Sally Culley hosted a Research and Writing seminar for us. With all due respect to the seminars, receiving a work assignment from the Managing Partner was perhaps the highlight of the day.

At this point, it was becoming manifest that RK’s Summer Associate Program was unique. This proved itself even more true as the day came to an end and an Escape Room experience became imminent. In the late afternoon, a group of roughly twelve associates and partners found themselves in the study of Professor James Moriarty—the arch nemesis of the great Sherlock Holmes and “the Napoleon of Crime.” Within the hour, the nefarious Moriarty planned to unleash a lethal biological weapon on the world unless “The Rumburglars” could find the antidote. I hoped being a fan of Sherlock Holmes (my dog is named after one of its characters) would come in handy. Indeed, as soon as the countdown began, it seemed like the ordeal was over. We completed several puzzles and ultimately secured the antidote in record time, thwarting Moriarty’s nefarious scheme in an insignificant 42 minutes and 53 seconds. Needless to say, we felt accomplished. And I took our success as a sign that Rumberger is a special firm and that I could expect similar successes over the summer. We concluded the day with dinner and drinks at a quaint Irish Pub.

The second day was equally as exciting as the first. After a few training sessions, I received a second assignment from associate Patrick Delaney. Incidentally, this assignment and the one I received earlier in the week were both Motions to Compel discovery. I was incredibly excited to receive these assignment since discovery consumes a considerable part of a litigation attorney’s time. I proceeded to work on my assignments throughout the day

Everyone who is anyone knows about Rumberger’s matchless Summer Associate Mock Trial. However, on Thursday, partner Steve Klein explained that, for the first time, summer associates will compete in a writing competition. He explained that it would be a new hallmark of the program. Admittedly, I shuddered when I first heard the words writing competition, but after hearing it explained, I felt excited to participate in it—and grateful that Rumberger puts this kind of time and energy into its program. Truly, there is no other program like this. In the afternoon, I received a third assignment from my other mentor, partner Chase Hattaway. I was asked to perform verdict research to ascertain the value of a case for one of our clients. This was a surprisingly stimulating research project, and I received insights into how to appraise a case’s worth. On Friday, the first full day without training, I worked on my assignments—completing at least a first draft for all of them. I found my first week enormously fulfilling. Week 2 is up next!