Ryan is an associate in the Firm's Columbia office. He focuses his practice on e-discovery, business litigation, and pharmaceutical and medical device litigation. 

Why did you select your practice area?

I worked for the Dukes team as a summer associate after my 1L year and really enjoyed what I did and sort of decided then that civil litigation is what I wanted to do.

What are some of the traits that you admire the most amongst your peers?

Open and easy to talk to, hard working, seem to genuinely care about how I'm doing especially being a new associate.

What is one piece of advice you would give to individuals who want to get into this industry?

Try and really interact with the people you work with. I think it makes work a lot less stressful and more enjoyable.

Who is your biggest inspiration?

My mom for sure. The difficulty of raising three children while working a full-time job, and being successful at both, is something I can't even imagine.

What’s one piece of advice that greatly impacted you and your career trajectory?

To keep an open mind. I went into law school thinking litigation was the last type of law I wanted to practice.