What advice do you have for API attorneys just starting out in Big Law?
Lindsey: First, find reliable and trusted mentors. Mentorship is very important, and it’s a worthwhile investment to develop bonds with more senior API attorneys who have faced similar issues and had similar experiences. Even mentors in different practice areas can be valuable resources.

I would also strongly urge junior API attorneys to practice self-advocacy. It may feel natural to think, “I’ll let my accomplishments speak for themselves,” or to sit back and wait for opportunities to be handed to you. But it’s important to push past the initial discomfort and take an active role in your own career development.

Keli: Don’t be afraid to ask for help. You don’t need to do this on your own. You’re always welcome to tap into the API Professional Network — we have this community that’s available and open for others to join.

Neil: Be outgoing, work hard, and seek input and guidance from more senior attorneys and role models to better understand what has made those individuals successful and how they have navigated their own personal and professional journeys. Benefitting from the experiences of those who have come before you can be a great tool.

How did you get involved in the API Professional Network? How did you become a leader within the group?
Neil: I’ve been involved since I was a summer associate in 2015. As time has gone on, I’ve been fortunate enough to increase my involvement, and when there was an opportunity to help lead our group in Chicago, I felt it was my duty to help continue the growth of our group and support the Firm’s unwavering commitment to diversity and the API community.

Keli: I always did a lot of networking when I was in law school, and it carried over when I started at the Firm as a summer associate and first-year. It has been really natural for me to become more and more involved over the years, and I feel it’s important for me to pay it forward and mentor other API attorneys and law students. Now some of the summer associates I helped are my colleagues, and our relationships continue to grow.

Why is the API Professional Network important to you?
Neil: It’s important to provide a platform for API members to connect professionally and personally and to grow through collaboration and networking. This network allows attorneys from all different practice areas to connect and bond over commonalities in culture and traditions.

How does the API Professional Network support API attorneys and what types of professional and leadership development opportunities are there for API attorneys at Kirkland?
Neil: We sent over 40 attorneys to the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) conference this past year — the largest representation of any organization at the event, which was attended by more than 2,000 attorneys from around the world. We also host incredible networking events and series to connect API colleagues within local offices as well as in our offices nationally.

How do you see the API Professional Network growing in the coming years? What are your main goals?
Keli: I want to expand the mentorship experience and develop more formalized programming around this. As the API Professional Network has grown over the years, I’ve recognized that we need to make a more conscious effort to get to know each other and support each other. I want to keep trending in that direction.

Neil: My main goal is to increase representation. We have fortunately seen much greater representation from when I first began, but our work is far from complete. As we continue to provide examples of successful API attorneys and allow them to share their journeys and experiences with the next generation of API law students and encourage more and more members of the API community to pursue careers in law, we can truly achieve meaningful representation in the legal industry.

What do you consider the single most important issue facing API attorneys? What action can the legal industry take to address it?
Lindsey: The most important issue I see is the misconception that API attorneys as a whole are not outspoken, confident or dynamic enough to be leaders. As I see it, this misconception is largely predicated on stereotypes surrounding cultural values and personality traits of API people as a whole and is related to the systemic disadvantages that API people face in a broader context. The best way for those in the legal industry to address this issue is for them to examine and challenge their perceptions of API people — and this goes for API attorneys themselves.

Neil: Lack of mentorship and guidance, which is also a function of members of our community being reserved in advocating for themselves and seeking out leadership opportunities, is something we are actively working to address within the leadership of our API groups.

What sets Kirkland apart from other firms in terms of its support for the API community?
Keli: When I first started at Kirkland, whenever I had a question, people made time to help me. I was always empowered by the partners here and the API Professional Network to have the career I want and to be thoughtful about the matters I want to work on. I think that’s unique to the Kirkland community.

Neil: The commitment to providing resources and support to our API group — and to all professional networks more broadly — is unmatched and allows attorneys to engage with each other through fun, collaborative events and various speaker series that highlight the success of API individuals in society.

Is there anything you’d like people to know during this AAPI Heritage Month?
Keli: It’s important that we continue to serve our greater API community. I have personally experienced the rise in hate crimes against Asian-Americans. It doesn’t escape us just because we practice Big Law. But at the same time, we’re privileged as attorneys and have to remind ourselves how much more work there is to do. I encourage people to get involved with the various law associations and to do pro bono work that benefits the API community.

Learn more about our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.

Supporting the API Community Within and Outside of the Firm

Supporting the API Community Within and Outside of the Firm