In the early summer of 2020, Brian posted a picture on LinkedIn of his nearly twenty-year old form rejection letter from Perkins Coie LLP, the law firm where he is now a partner. The caption read: Law students: if at first you don’t succeed, try try again.

The post went viral, and over 4 million people saw it. Brian was instantly inundated with dozens of requests for mentorship. 

So, Brian started meeting with mentees one at a time. But he quickly realized he couldn’t do it alone. 

Enter Chrystal, Matt, Lenora, and over 200 other practicing lawyers from around the country who, via a few LinkedIn posts, agreed to help mentor these young professionals in need. 

Soon an informal mentor network was formed. And within a few months, hundreds of mentors who didn’t know each other were volunteering to meet with law students and young lawyers looking for mentorship.

Our informal program has been wildly successful for everyone involved. Mentors love it. Mentees need it. And it has led to hundreds of new relationships and dozens of young professionals landing jobs they otherwise wouldn’t have obtained.

That’s why after some discussion, and Matt’s law firm - DLA Piper - agreeing to step up and fund our initiative, we formed this new non-profit. The Legal Mentor Network formalizes our informal program, so we can pay it forward for years to come.

We hope that the Legal Mentor Network grows to one day provide mentorship to anyone who wants it. That’s our dream. If you’d like to be a part of it, please Get Involved and/or Contribute.

Thank you.