How do I understand a legal problem from more than one side?
I want to understand what a legal problem looks like to everyone involved. Early experiences inside a business, a law firm and a federal court have shown me how differently the same problem can look depending on where you sit. That perspective helps me ask better questions and think more carefully about what comes next.
Understanding what’s at stake beyond the contract
Working inside a major steel company gave Brandon an early look at the connection between legal decisions and business operations. He reviewed contracts and observed negotiations involving some of the world’s largest companies while researching issues involving construction, real estate, corporate, tax, employment and other areas of law. The experience exposed him to legal questions in the context in which clients actually encounter them—as part of larger business decisions, relationships and projects.
Seeing a case from inside the courtroom
As a judicial extern to U.S. Magistrate Judge Suzanne Mitchell in the Western District of Oklahoma, Brandon researched issues involving pleading standards and jurisdiction, and summarized motions for summary judgment. He also observed settlement conferences, arraignments, detention and preliminary hearings, pretrial conferences and trials, giving him an early view of how arguments developed outside the courtroom are examined inside it.
The details can change the direction of a case
Brandon’s private-practice experience in medical malpractice and healthcare matters required him to work closely with the underlying record—reviewing and organizing medical records, researching expert witnesses, summarizing depositions and assisting with discovery and document production. It reinforced the importance of mastering the facts before deciding where they lead.