I have worked with many former lawyers in my career and my experience with them has always been fantastic.
The first former lawyer I worked with was Milt Pappas who, along with his partner Bliss McCrum, were my first bosses in venture capital and they taught me so much.
Milt told me that he believed that a legal education was a fantastic preparation for the business world. Milt had attended law school but never practiced law. He went right into a trust and estates department at a leading bank in Cleveland Ohio, where in the 1960s he became acquainted with private investments and that led him to doing deals with some of the earliest VCs. In 1970, he and Bliss started Euclid Partners and that's where I got my first job in venture capital. Milt taught me so much about being a minority investor, being a great board member, balancing responsibilities to our portfolio companies and our investors, and so much more.
Three of my partners at USV are former lawyers, John Buttrick, Andy Weissman, and Samson Mesele. are great investors and great partners.
I have helped quite a few former lawyers move from legal careers to working in startups. I have found that they are often great business partners to early-stage founders. They can take on many roles, including finance, HR, business development, business operations, and, of course, legal. I am not entirely sure what it is about a legal education, but I feel that it prepares people to be effective across a range of activities.
I have run into business leaders who see a legal background on a resume and pause. They think it is a limiting background. I feel the opposite about it. I see it as a sign of range and capability. Particularly with people who left the practice of law early or mid career.
So if you need someone on your team who can take all of the administrative functions off your plate and run with them, consider a former lawyer. It is a bit of an unconventional move, but I think it is a strong one.
