Thomas Sipp

It's during that time that I really decided I want to be a part of this project here in the United States.

It's a march towards justice, the betterment of everyone.

I think there are these core principles that are unique to the United States in many ways.

Yeah.

I'm not blind to the errors in the past, and I know that the United States has not been and still is not a perfect country.

But I really still believe that

When the United States is doing the right things, the whole world is a better place because of it.

Well, so a lot of the people with the cool jobs in D.C.

tend to have law degrees.

And so I figured it was the next best step afterward.

And so I go to law school straight out of college.

All the law firms, the big law firms, almost by definition pay the same scale salary.

So the way that these law firms distinguish themselves from each other oftentimes is in things like how their pro bono program operates, how invested they are into diversity initiatives.

And I chose Skadden because it had the prestige.

And as a 22-year-old trying to pay off...

A six-figure debt.

I was drawn toward a higher salary, among other things.

That's right.

And Skadden really advertised two things.

It's pro bono program and it's diversity initiatives.