Ground rules: You must fight the animal in its natural habitat, you can’t, for example, fight a whale on land, and you may use a weapon only if the animal could use the same weapon; a knife fight with a chimpanzee, for example, would be allowed.

Fighting animals probably isn’t how you expected the Young Lawyers Section (YLS) Chair to start an article talking about the group, but I used it to begin our annual YLS board retreat, which kicked off what I have affectionately referred to as my “reign of terror” as Chair. In case you were wondering, I think I could take a deer. Two of our members said they could take a giraffe. I’m a little skeptical about the giraffe but it goes to show how ambitious attorneys can be. 

One of my favorite things about YLS is that I can ask questions like this during our meetings. We are professionals, and we’re clearly full of ambitious new and new-ish attorneys. But working with folks who are in the same stage of their careers offers a camaraderie and degree of familiarity that is not always available when you find yourself working with seasoned partners at a law firm or on a local board of directors. 

At its heart, YLS is a group of attorneys and law students who are interested in meeting their peers, serving their communities, and growing as attorneys. We’re all in the early stages of our legal careers, and YLS provides an avenue for us to talk to each other about our experiences and our challenges. We also want to be leaders in the legal community, and YLS provides that avenue as well. We plan events. We give and get advice from one another. And yes, we talk about fighting giraffes sometimes. The point is that YLS helps us achieve our professional goals without having to necessarily “be professional” all the time. 

One of the biggest benefits YLS provides is networking opportunities, and happy hours are our specialty. My favorite event is our annual summer social, which brings attorneys and summer associates together over drinks and hors d’oeuvres. Every year I leave the event with a new batch of colleagues. I’ve even scored some good recruiting opportunities for my firm, which is saying something because the event historically takes place at another firm’s fancy rooftop patio.

I’ve benefitted enormously from being a YLS member. I’ve met attorneys from every kind of background and practice area; we’ve got Cincinnati locals, transplants, prosecutors, civil litigators, in-house counsel, and more. It’s given me contacts in the community that I never would have had if I only dealt with lawyers in my firm or opposing counsel in my cases. I even credit YLS for getting me to my firm, since it’s how I met my future boss and mentor, Faith Whittaker (Hi Faith!). 

Our membership is open to attorneys in their first 10 years of practice and law students. We chose this group because we’re all in that developmental stage. We’re looking to expand our networks, find opportunities, and figure out ways to build our careers. YLS provides those opportunities, and I consider my career to be a testament to that.

So whether you’re looking for leadership opportunities, to meet people, or just want to tell people how you could absolutely fight a dolphin, YLS has what you’ve been looking for. We hope to see you soon!

Jon Kelly is chair of the CBA YLS and an associate at Dinsmore.