Interview conducted by Heaven Baylor ’28
Why law school?
I applied to law school on a whim in 2015. During college, I majored in environmental studies and was debating whether to go to graduate school or law school. I originally wanted to be an environmental lawyer, but I didn’t know what a career in environmental law looked like. I also didn’t know what type of environmental law I wanted to practice at first. Eventually, I realized I wanted to pursue a career in public interest environmental law. My path ended up taking me down other public interest avenues, though.
What was your law school experience like?
I spent four years in law school due to a medical condition, so my path was a bit nontraditional. During law school, I had to undergo several brain surgeries, but I still wasn’t fully “healed” necessarily. After my surgeries, in addition to my usual symptoms, I developed short-term memory loss. I had to learn how to navigate law school with these new challenges, and I struggled with my evolving identity as someone with a disability. However, law school was overall a positive experience.
What were you involved in during law school?
I participated in Youth Court, which was part of Meg Clifford’s school-to-prison pipeline project. Youth Court went to local middle schools to teach and implement restorative justice practices. I also did a few pro bono projects during 1L, such as the expunction project, but Youth Court was my primary focus. Later, I worked with Lucy Wood to develop the SPEAK project. I also helped develop the Texas Law Disability Alliance (currently known as the Disability and Neurodivergent Law Student Alliance). I started participating in a few clinics, but I didn’t get to finish them due to my medical condition. I also served as an admissions ambassador giving law school campus tours for a couple of years.
What was your most formative law school experience?
I think the pro bono activities I was involved in, particularly Youth Court, were most impactful for me. Being involved kept me motivated, particularly during my 1L doctrinal courses.
What were your career goals as a student? Did they evolve over time?
Like I said, I originally wanted to pursue a public interest career focused on environmental law. However, I eventually realized that housing is an important subset of environmental law; the way neighborhoods and communities are set up now reflects a legacy of racial discrimination and segregation. Poor communities also tend to experience more environmental issues because they have fewer resources to fight back against zoning concerns in their neighborhoods. I realized that by focusing on housing issues, I could also help communities with environmental law issues as well. That’s when I decided to switch my focus to housing.
What has your career looked like since graduation?
I received a fellowship for my first year out of law school to work at the SAFE Alliance, where I practiced family/domestic violence related law. This fellowship lasted about a year before I transitioned to legal aid here in Austin. While I was working in legal aid, I applied to Disability Rights Texas (DRTx). I’ve been here for about three years, as part of the housing team.
What does your day-to-day work look like?
I help individuals with disabilities obtain reasonable accommodations from their housing providers; so for example, sometimes that means advocating for changes to a tenant’s rent due date based on their SSDI payment schedule, or helping a client get approval to keep their service animal in their rental unit. My job is remote, so I use videoconferencing software like Teams and Zoom often. Most of my job involves communicating with clients, negotiating with landlords, and drafting accommodation requests. I have occasionally done eviction work, but typically that is only if a client I am already assisting is at risk of eviction. I don’t go to court as often as I thought I would before becoming a lawyer, but I enjoy the work that I get to do every day.
What general advice would you give to law students about to graduate and start their careers?
I’ve thought a lot about what I want to express to law students about graduation and beginning life as a lawyer. I decided that I want to share my experience with the Bar exam and offer some advice.
I graduated from law school in May of 2019. However, I had to wait for the February 2020 Bar exam because of my health challenges. These challenges made it difficult to study and sit for the Bar exam. When I sat for the Bar in February of 2020, I did not pass. I was devastated. I felt embarrassed, and I was concerned about how my score would affect my life and career going forward.
As you may remember, not long after that February 2020 Bar exam, the whole world changed, and the Bar exam had to change too. Because of the COVID19 Pandemic, Texas held its last-ever Texas Bar Exam online in October of 2020 before switching to the UBE. At home, I sat for this virtual bar exam, and thankfully I received a passing score.
Taking the Bar is stressful for all graduates, whether they have a disability or not. So, I want to reassure you: it is not the end of the world if you don’t pass the Bar Exam the first time. Your worth as a person, your intelligence as a student, is not wrapped up in this score. It’s important to remember that if you don’t pass, you CAN try again.
Is your work different from what you expected?
Yes, in some ways. In the past, I thought “being a lawyer” meant I would go to court often, but I don’t in my current role. Most of my time is spent negotiating with landlords and opposing counsel. It’s important to know and remember that being a lawyer involves much more than going to court, and there are many potential paths within the legal profession. So, if going to court isn’t for you, that’s okay, too.
What is something you’re working on right now that you’re excited about?
I find most of my cases to be very interesting, and I love successfully resolving my clients’ legal issues; I take great pride in being able to do this work. In addition to practicing law at DRTx, I am heavily involved in the organization’s Union. Any bargaining eligible employee interested in joining the Union can sign up as a member, and dues are deducted from their paychecks. However, the work of the Union benefits all employees, regardless of membership status. I signed up to be a dues paying member as soon as I started with Disability Rights Texas. Now, I am the Union’s President; I love advocating for our rights as employees.
What do you want people to know about the work you do that people might be unaware of or misunderstand?
People typically don’t understand what I mean when I say “I practice housing law.” I often need to specify that I work with and on behalf of tenants, not landlords. And like I mentioned above, I also want people to know that while my role does not involve going to court often, I do spend most of my time negotiating. So, for anyone reading this who may be interested in a less adversarial career, where you can still do meaningful work, there are roles in the legal profession for you.
Advice for 1Ls who have similar career interests?
Get connected early-on to things you’re passionate about and never forget your “why.” For me, that meant getting involved in pro bono activities so that I could stay motivated during courses that felt disconnected from what I wanted to do.
Advice for graduating 3Ls pursuing public interest careers?
Even if you don’t land a public interest job right out of law school, stay connected to your “why.” There are still many ways to remain involved, through pro bono work, committees or boards, etc.
And if you do get to work in the public interest sphere, just don’t forget: It’s a privilege to take a public interest job; you’re one of the lucky ones!