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A Week in the Life of Nina Santiago
Nina Santiago was a summer associate in the firm’s Washington, DC office in 2007 while in her second year at Georgetown University Law Center. She shared her experiences from one week of her summer at RDB.
Monday
Morning
8:00 a.m. I catch the metro to work. My apartment is only a few stops away from the office, so my daily commute is fairly short and relaxed. I pick up some coffee and breakfast on the way in.
8:25 a.m. I settle in at my desk and enjoy my breakfast while checking out today’s headlines online.
9:00 a.m. I work on editing a memo on potentially favorable jurisdictions for a client’s subsidiary, which I updated for Paul Vitrano, a partner. I have already updated the memo with my own supplemental write-up, so I incorporate my edits to the original memo (which was authored by someone else a few years ago).
Noon. Last week I edited a list of potential exhibits for a pro bono adoption case I have been helping with throughout the summer. I flagged any potential evidentiary issues that may come up at trial, and marked portions of the exhibits which may prove useful at trial. Working on the case has been one of my most interesting assignments, as it has given me the opportunity to observe various stages of litigation. I have observed depositions, listened in on a teleconference with an expert witness, and attended a pre-trial conference at DC Superior Court – all within a relatively short span of time. I review the amended list and make additional edits before sending it along to Rose Stafiej, the associate working on the case.
Afternoon
12:30 p.m. I decide to break for lunch, so I head out to run some errands and grab a bite to eat.
1:30 p.m. I review some articles and cases that our Westlaw representative helped me find last week when I sought help with a research assignment related to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Three other summer associates and I are responsible for researching different parts of this assignment. Jonathan Cohen, the assigning associate, mentioned that he did not think many cases would turn up with respect to my issue, so I expect that I will continue researching after reviewing these results.
2:20 p.m. I go down the hall to the office of my associate mentor, Sharla Toller, to say hello and catch up on how her weekend went. Sharla has really helped me navigate my way through the summer, from fielding my questions on how things function at the office, to giving me feedback on some of my assignments. In addition, it’s just been fun to get to know her and chat with her about both work-related and non-work-related topics.
2:35 p.m. I continue to review potentially helpful articles and cases for my FOIA assignment. I also research the issue on Westlaw, and on the U.S. Department of Justice website.
5:25 p.m. Megan Replogle, another summer associate, stops by my office to talk about our progress in the FOIA research assignment.
5:30 p.m. Terri Carnahan, our Director of Human Resources, passes by to say hello and find out how my weekend went. I fill her in on the good time I had with my college friends while at a wedding in Michigan.
5:35 p.m. I continue researching cases for my FOIA assignment on Westlaw, and consult a guidebook on FOIA.
6:10 p.m. I e-mail two memos to Sally Gere, my partner reader, for feedback. One is a memo I drafted for Rose for the adoption case, and the other is the write-up I drafted to update the memo for Paul.
6:25 p.m. I receive a reply from Sally asking if I have received feedback from each of my assigning attorneys, and I let her know what the status is regarding feedback on both write-ups.
6:35 p.m. I decide to call it a day, and meet my boyfriend for dinner at an Indian restaurant across the street.
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