“ The fact that some of my law professors took an interest in me and in my success as a clerk was meaningful,” he says.“ Their counsel provided me with a good perspective and undoubtedly made me a better clerk. When I returned to school after the clerkships ended, there were professors who invested in me. That trust was instrumental in my development as a lawyer.”
As graduation neared, Williams decided to leave the West Virginia State Police and stay with Steptoe & Johnson. His upcoming wedding was part of his motivation for that decision, and his summertime clerkship experiences contributed to his choosing that firm.
Williams never expected to find the same spirit of teamwork in a law firm setting that he had experienced as a state trooper, but his coworkers at Steptoe & Johnson proved him wrong.
“ I cannot tell you why Steptoe & Johnson took a gamble on me, but I’ m glad they did,” says Williams.“ From the start of my career with them until today, there has always been someone within the firm willing to invest time to make me a better lawyer. And for those times when you need a soft place to land because you’ ve had a rough day, there is always someone there. I can recall fumbling a matter I was working on for a senior member of the firm as an associate. After revealing the significant mistake, not only did the senior partner give me some great words of encouragement, but another member in the firm volunteered to stay late into the night to help me complete what needed to be completed. To my knowledge, no one ever kept score of that incident or used it against me. The incident never adversely impacted my career or, more importantly, adversely impacted the trust my partners put in me.”
Their selflessness made him want to work harder and show the same giving spirit to others. He does this not only as an attorney but as the co-leader of the General Litigation Practice Group, leader of the Emergency Response Team and member of the diversity and recruiting committees.
“ In the General Litigation Practice Group, it is my job to identify strategies for the group based on input from the group members that fit with the firm’ s overall objectives,” he says.“ We listen to the needs and concerns of group members, address the needs or concerns as best we can, work with others in firm leadership positions and work to ensure the group is making a meaningful contribution to the firm’ s success. For the Emergency Response
Williams participating in the 2015 Dancing Through Time event for the Alzheimer’ s Association.
Team, my job is to assemble, oversee and, if necessary, participate in coordinated emergency response efforts. Responses to client emergencies require fast thinking, quick action and sound decision-making. My state police training was good preparation.”
As a member of the firm’ s recruiting and diversity committees, Williams aims to broaden diversity, find attorneys suited to the firm’ s values and ensure they are knowledgeable on key issues. To strengthen its diversity efforts, Steptoe & Johnson has formed a partnership with the LCLD.
“ LCLD is an organization that focuses on creating diversity in the legal profession,” he explains.“ Because LCLD is a leader in this regard, and because LCLD’ s mission aligns with Steptoe & Johnson’ s beliefs, it was a natural partnership. Simply put, our profession is better with diverse attorneys in it.”
Williams, a West Virginia Bar Association fellow, carries his own experience with him as he mentors law students at the WVU College of Law.“ All the students I’ ve mentored have been ethnically diverse and from larger cities,” he says.“ Typically, the College of Law is their first meaningful experience with the state of West Virginia. Frankly, West Virginia, through the eyes of a person with no prior experience with the state who may be from a metropolitan area or an area with more ethnic diversity, can be intimidating. I find that most of the students I deal with have similar questions or face similar issues, perceived or real. What I hope to bring to the table is perspective, particularly given that my experience with the state was similar to their experience.”
His experience since coming to West Virginia— where he has coached youth football, participated with Habitat for Humanity and even earned second place in a dance competition fundraiser for the Alzheimer’ s Association— has been a positive one.
“ Although I am not from West Virginia, I have lived in West Virginia longer than anywhere else,” he says.“ I can honestly say that West Virginia raised me. Almost every important milestone in my life is connected to this state. The people of West Virginia have been good to me. Interestingly, I find that I can often be more protective of West Virginia than people born and raised within the state. West Virginia educated me, gave me more professional opportunities than I could have imagined and taught me how to love nature and countless other things that I may not have experienced living elsewhere. I am grateful for it all.” •
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