Finding Your People

The summer before her final year of law school, Nichole Smith knew she had found her people. 

Or, as her son says, she found her nerds.

Smith, jd ’23, participated in the Summer Associate Program at Polsinelli’s Kansas City law office after her Washburn Law 2L year. With Kansas City being where her Air Force family was settled, she knew she wanted to return to the metro area after getting her law degree. Interning at a large firm such as Polsinelli gave her the chance to explore several options and select one that was right for her.

She found her people in the employee stock ownership plan group. “I jokingly say that I stalked them in a very friendly, non-threatening manner that summer to convince them they wanted an associate. When I put them as my preference, they decided maybe I really did mean it.”

Smith was hired by Polsinelli after graduation and she’s now an associate on the ESOP practice group. “I like my group, but I realized I like the work a lot too.” 

She finds it rewarding to help business owners implement an ESOP and guide them through the challenges, including IRS and Department of Labor regulations. “There’s nothing nameless or faceless in an ESOP deal,” Smith said. “The sellers generally built their company from the ground up, or it’s been a family company for generations and now they’re looking to sell, and they’re choosing to sell to their employees.” 

Derek Leiblie, ba ’19, jd ’23, was in the same summer program and graduating class as Smith and is an associate in Polsinelli’s commercial contracts group. He came to Washburn from the small Kansas town of Udal knowing he wanted to be a lawyer in Kansas City. The Polsinelli summer program caught his attention. 

“I was impressed by Polsinelli’s commitment to its culture and diversity, which I think a lot of firms tout as a strength but sometimes don’t back up,” Leiblie said. “As an LGBTQ professional, I was invited to several discussions to share my experiences here. That definitely was the biggest draw.” 

Leiblie reviews contracts involving supplier vendor agreements in several areas including the health, wellness and beauty industries. “I love our group, and I think that plays a huge role. The contracts are fun to review, but the people I work with are even better.” 

With over 1,300 attorneys throughout 27 U.S. cities, Polsinelli is one of the largest domestic-only firms in the country. It prides itself on offering “humanity, compassion and true partnership” to their clients and employees. 

To find new attorneys offering those traits, Polsinelli looks for more than what’s taught in the classroom. Anthony Springfield, ba ’99, jd ’02, a shareholder at Polsinelli who works in product liability and litigation, is active in the recruitment of summer associates. He’s always impressed when he goes to Washburn for student interviews. 

“I interviewed Derek and Nichole,” Springfield said. “It’s the personalities, right? You want someone obviously successful academically with experiences outside of the academic realm that they enjoy doing, but also someone driven to work hard and really bright – everything you’re looking for in young associates. They had those unique traits then and they have them now.” 

Pat Woolley, jd ’93, chairs Polsinelli’s intellectual property department out of the Kansas City office and has been at Polsinelli for 26 years. 

“I always wanted to do sophisticated work for well-known, sophisticated clients,” Woolley said. His work allows him to offer advice and diligence on mergers and acquisitions or securities offerings for such clients as SpaceX. “We have built a platform that allows for that kind of work, which ultimately fits my practice and goals. I wouldn’t have been here 26 years if I didn’t like being in a big, general practice firm.” 

Today’s Washburn-trained attorneys continue to have the same drive to succeed at a large firm like Polsinelli. “Nichole and Derek are reflective of a group that comes in and we have really high expectations for them, and I think they’re meeting those expectations,” Woolley said. “We’re looking for some of the top students who have really good experience and come off as being thoughtful and polished and able to jump in and work hard right away.” 

“You can learn legal concepts from anywhere, but I think the human interactions I got from Washburn Law were super beneficial,” Leiblie said. “Washburn does a great job of having reasonably small class sizes so there’s a lot of one-on-one attention from professors. Those professional interactions set me far apart from candidates from other universities. Oftentimes my small study group, Nichole included, would chat with now-Dean (Jeff) Jackson after class and have professional, courteous conversations, which I think is a huge benefit coming out of law school.” 

Those experiences shaped him and other Washburn graduates into more than just knowledgeable attorneys. 

“I think a lot of it is how you interact with everyone,” he said. “Your personality, your ability to interact with others in a courteous way, they might sound like simple concepts, but some people don’t have them. I think in recruiting, Polsinelli is definitely looking to see if you’re a good fit for our culture.” 

“I came out of law school with real-world training,” Smith said. “And the class sizes were small enough that I could develop real relationships with professors. I had Professor (Lori) McMillan for my business tax class and most of my tax classes, and I am still in touch with Lori. I very much appreciated that about Washburn.” 

She works with McMillan teaching Washburn’s VITA and Tax Compliance class by supervising the students who put on the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Clinic. Now that she and Leiblie are a few years into their legal careers, they’re helping Polsinelli’s summer associates and new hires adjust to life in a large law firm. 

“Washburn grads are confident and they’re personable,” Smith said. “I very much appreciate when they are not afraid to reach out and just say, ‘Hey, I have no idea what I’m doing with this thing. Can you walk me through it?’ I have found that Washburn grads are not afraid to ask me things.” 

“I definitely take an active role in our summer associate program,” Leiblie said. “I attend all the social interactions and try to set up lunches, especially if there’s a Washburn student. I try to stay active in our recruiting as a member of our LGBTQ diversity resource group.” 

Polsinelli will continue following the talent at Washburn Law and work to bring the best of them into their firm.

“We’re a firm where people stay,” Springfield said. “You start here. They want you to become a shareholder here. They want you to finish your career here.” 

“We’ve had a lot of Washburn grads in key leadership roles here,” Woolley said. “In a firm of this size, key leadership is important to how you drive culture, growth and vision for a firm. Washburn has been front and center in that journey.” 

“It shows you exactly the reputation the school has,” Springfield said. “It shows you the quality of the students they’re getting. They continue to look for those excellent students and continue to put out excellent lawyers ready to take on the challenges of a firm like Polsinelli.”

“We get them in the summer. If they succeed, they have an offer waiting for them when they graduate,” Woolley said. 

By that time, they have likely found their people.