Name: Domonic

Year: Senior

Major: Economics, Political Science

Minor: Spanish

CFS Program: Legal Field Studies

As a senior with quite a bit of past internship and work experience in the legal field, I believe my approach to CFS to be quite different than many of my peers. I view CFS not as an opportunity to learn how to work in an office setting, or even to get a basic understanding of the legal field. I already have both of those things. Rather I see it as a dual opportunity: first as a chance to expand my interests and experience within the law, but second, to explore what a work-life in the City of Chicago might be like.
I am very fortunate as an undergraduate to have had extensive past work experience in a general practice litigation firm. However, just given the nature of that firm and its locale, I had less experience in litigation at the federal level, and absolutely none working in Civil Rights. I am fortunate to be working at one of the preeminent civil rights litigation firms in Chicago owned by a well-known and quite successful litigator. This has given me a far different perspective on civil rights law than I would otherwise have had. First and foremost, I have come to realize that civil rights law isn’t limited to the types of cases that we have seen in the news in recent years. I have found myself working on a surprising number of cases which do not fit that stereotype.
On another note, my relationship with Chicago has always been an interesting one. I am from a small town in Wisconsin, and have always known in the back of my mind that Chicago, given its pull throughout the Midwest, would be a potential location that I might one day end up working. This opportunity has given me the opportunity to determine whether or not I could actually work here. I love spending time in Chicago, and greatly enjoy my work, but I have found that the commute is exhausting.

These are just two examples of experiences and insights that I have gained as a result of my participation in CFS. It has truly been a great experience and the insights and advantages that I have gained as a result of this program cannot be contained in a single blog post, nor likely even a single blog.