黑料门

Practice makes powerful

Both Ward and Cronin say their time as Corboy Fellows significantly shaped their careers. 鈥淧ractical experience is key鈥攜ou learn by doing,鈥� says Ward. 鈥淓ven if you don鈥檛 want to be a trial attorney, even in transactional law, you need to get comfortable thinking and speaking on your feet, pivoting, and adapting. And the more you practice, the more comfortable you get. I tell people all the time that the two things that have most shaped the work I鈥檓 doing now were my clerkship in the public defender鈥檚 office and my time as a Corboy Fellow.鈥� 

鈥淧ractical experience is key鈥攜ou learn by doing.鈥�

Even now, Ward benefits from her Corboy connections. As a criminal defense attorney, she says, she rarely encounters some of the rules of evidence common in civil cases, but coaching keeps those concepts fresh. 鈥淎nd talking about the law to my students helps keep my explaining skills sharp for my clients,鈥� she says. 

Cronin says mock trial experience confers 鈥渇undamental life skills that apply in every area of the law. In my job now, I can really see the difference in people who had the opportunity to practice those skills before they actually had to be in a courtroom.鈥� 

Worth the time investment

How do two very busy criminal trial lawyers make time to keep coaching in the intensive Corboy program? 鈥淚t鈥檚 something I want to be part of, so I make the time,鈥� says Cronin. 鈥満诹厦舏s incredibly good at lifting up everybody, wanting everybody to succeed. I benefited from a great network of alumni, professors, and staff, and now I鈥檓 happy to be part of that team.鈥�

鈥満诹厦舏s incredibly good at lifting up everybody, wanting everybody to succeed.鈥�

Helping others make the transition from law school to effective practice fuels Ward鈥檚 continuing commitment to coaching. 鈥淚 like to watch students become good attorneys,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 always want to be an example for all women, but especially for Black women, who may say, 鈥業f she can do this, I can do it, too.鈥欌�� 鈥�Gail Mansfield (January 2024)