With Week 2 underway and our time as summer associates ramping up, now is a good time to reflect on some of the events we attended towards the end of the whirlwind that was Week 1. After going through orientation and various trainings over our first two days, we began work on our first assignments on Wednesday. Given our neophyte status within the practice of law and our desire to develop strong practices from the beginning of our careers, Wednesday evening we were introduced to the library staff. Our firm’s Chief Knowledge Officer, Paul VanderMeer and the rest of the library team demonstrated for us all of the resources available at Bilzin Sumberg. However, this was not your typical night hitting the books; as we watched a presentation about the firm’s vast knowledge management system and were educated us as to how we can best take advantage of it, we enjoyed a Happy Hour with the staff. There is no question that what we learned will be invaluable to us as we move forward in our careers at Bilzin Sumberg.
Newly armed with more detailed knowledge on how best to attack our assignments, we truly dove in on Thursday before being treated to lunch on Thursday afternoon. The firm’s first-year associates, Elise Holtzman and Jennifer Llano, took the five summer associates out to lunch at Fi’lia, the restaurant at the SLS (conveniently located one block from our firm’s beautiful offices). Over some great pasta, Elise and Jennifer regaled us with tales of their time as summer associates and gave us practical advice on a host of relevant topics. We had a very enjoyable time and even managed to stay dry on the way back to work!
To close out our first week, each of us went to lunch with our mentors before the firm’s annual summer bake-off. My mentor, Shalia Sakona, and I ate tacos by the pool on the rooftop of the Four Seasons as I peppered her with questions about virtually everything under the sun. Shalia graciously tolerated my inquisitiveness and provided me with amazing guidance about the practice of law, litigation, life in Miami, and the firm itself. We returned to the office just in time to judge the yearly showdown between two fierce competitors: Jessica Buchsbaum and Paul VanderMeer. Ultimately, despite a valiant effort, Paul was unable to overcome his chocolate caramel tart’s lack of solid form and Jessica’s “Knock You Naked” brownies were voted the winner! As we dined on delicious desserts, the firm’s Bloomberg representative gave us an overview of all of the services Bloomberg has to make our jobs easier. Overall, it was an outstanding first week of learning, networking, fun, and most importantly, food! We can’t wait to see what this week and the rest of the summer have in store for us!