W
hen I chose to attend
Loyola University Chicago
for my undergraduate
studies, I was the first in my family to
leave home and attend college, and
the first and only one to graduate.
I knew Loyola was my best chance
at success; it was far enough away
from home to provide me with a “true”
college experience, yet close enough
that I could board the train and be
home in Milwaukee in two hours. I
arrived at Loyola and in Chicago not
knowing anyone. Because of the
community of students, faculty, and
staff and the size of the campus I felt
immediately welcomed.
I was a criminal justice major,
so most of my classes were held at
Loyola’s Water Tower Campus. I enjoyed
attending class surrounded by the
hustle and bustle—that, in itself,
was educational. I had many great
professors, but two who really stood
out were Magnus Seng, PhD, and David
Struckhoff, PhD, of the Department of
Criminal Justice. They opened my eyes
to our system of justice and the impact
it has on our society.
I could not afford to travel
abroad. Instead, I spent the spring
semester of my junior year at Catholic
University in Washington, DC, and
interned with the public affairs
department of the United States
Department of Justice. The internship
was a tremendous experience.
I graduated in 1996, unsure
of what I wanted to do with my
degree. Because of cost, I could not
commit to law school at that point.
Instead, for a year I juggled two jobs
without benefits and was neither
challenged nor satisfied. Then, Loyola
started a paralegal program, and I
eagerly applied.
First steps into
the legal field
When I earned a certificate in
paralegal studies a year later, I blindly
sent résumés out to about 100 law
firms and got nowhere. Then I did
something that was uncharacteristic
of me at the time. I reached out to
the director of Loyola’s Institute for
Paralegal Studies, Jean Hellman
Ryan, and asked for help. It just so
happened that Professor Hellman
Ryan (BA ’74, LLM ’95) had gone to
law school with Kevin Conway (BA ’73,
JD ’76) of Cooney & Conway. She
was kind enough to reach out to
Kevin, whose colleague, Kathy Byrne
(JD ’88; see page 34), was in need of
a legal assistant. I met with Kathy and
was hired—not only because she
liked me but also because she liked
that I’d interned for Janet Reno at the
Department of Justice. I worked as her
assistant for two years before being
promoted to managing paralegal of
the firm’s intake department.
It was around this time that one
of the partners asked me if I had
considered attending law school. I gave
this some thought, and knew I wanted
to be a plaintiff’s personal injury
attorney after seeing the injustice
and inhumanity that the victims of
asbestos exposure experience. I took
the LSAT, enrolled in Loyola’s part-time
evening program, and continued to
work full time. I was fortunate to attend
the London Comparative Advocacy
Program over Christmas break with
Associate Dean Jim Faught, Professor
Dick Michael, and others. It was an
enlightening program and a fun time
of year to be in London.
While at Cooney & Conway, I
met many of the attorneys who were
friends of the firm. Two such attorneys
were Al Schwartz and Steve Jambois
of Kralovec Jambois & Schwartz. This
firm had been started by the Hon.
William D. Maddux, the recently retired
presiding judge of the Law Division
of the Circuit Court of Cook County.
I became friends with Al and Steve
and occasionally socialized with them.
Shortly before graduation, I asked
Judge Maddux for his advice about
approaching Kevin and John Cooney
about hiring me as an associate;
however, before I could even have
that conversation with them, they had
already hired someone.
On to“Corboy
College”
Timing is everything, and my
timing was perfect, because Judge
Maddux needed a law clerk. I spent
the first two and a half years of my law
career as his clerk, and I consider myself
fortunate to have had that opportunity.
I had—and continue to have—a great
mentor. Judge Maddux was always
thoughtful and would introduce me to
potential employers. One night I met
Shawn Kasserman, a former partner at
Corboy & Demetrio, who invited me to
drop off my résumé. Again, the timing
was perfect, and before I knew it, I was
enrolled in the“Corboy College”as a
young associate at Corboy & Demetrio.
I never in my wildest dreams
thought I would work at such a
legendary firm. I didn’t grow up in
Chicago well connected, but because
of the connections I made, I had the
privilege to work under the late, great
Philip Corboy (JD ’49) and with many
of the other remarkable trial lawyers
who have worked there and continue
to work there.
It is hard to believe that it
has been 12 years since I graduated
from Loyola’s School of Law and
become one of the proud few who can
call herself a triple Rambler. Graduating
from Loyola was just the beginning
of each chapter of my success, and
this is my greatest chapter yet. Thus far
in the course of my young career I have
had the opportunity to try 16 cases to
verdict and ascend to the presidency
of theWomen’s Bar Association of
Illinois. These accomplishments are a
true testament to Corboy & Demetrio’s
mentoring of trial lawyers and leaders
in this profession as well as to the
great educators at the Philip H.
Corboy Law Center. I know Mr. Corboy
would be proud.
■
The networking
path of a Rambler
By
Michelle M. Kohut
(BA ’96, JD ’02 )
››
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Michelle Kohut joined the prestigious Chicago law firm Corboy & Demetrio as an attorney in 2004.
An intricate web of Loyola connections helps an alum land her dream job
“I never inmy wildest dreams
thought I would
work at such
a legendary firm.”
—Michelle M. Kohut (BA ’96, JD ’02)
SPRING 2014
29
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LOYOLA LAW
