Wilkinson Stekloff is proud to be featured by the Washington Lawyer, the official publication of the D.C. bar, in its latest cover story titled “Redefining the New Associate Experience.” The article offers an in-depth look at how the firm—celebrating its 10th anniversary this year—has built a distinctive model to achieve its primary mission: developing the next generation of trial lawyers. Bucking the conventions of traditional big law practice, Wilkinson Stekloff’s approach offers a compelling model grounded in hands-on experience, early responsibility, and a culture that prizes mentorship over hierarchy.
“There are a lot of great attributes, qualities, and development that you can get in Big Law, but it’s hard to develop those skills for a trial because you need a lot of repetition.” says Beth Wilkinson, one of the firm’s founding partners. “So, a lot of young attorneys don’t get that trial experience.”
“Brian Stekloff, the firm’s other founding partner, says Big Law tends to be very hierarchical. ‘The junior associate reports to the mid-level associate, who reports to the senior associate, who reports to the junior partner, who reports to the senior partner. If you are a younger attorney, it is hard to get exposure to a lot of the strategy of a trial case,’ Stekloff says. ‘We are not going to limit them to just doing research projects. We are going to ask them to be involved in important strategy meetings and important witness meetings to help us really prepare the witnesses. The associates are going to act well beyond their years out of law school the minute they join us.’”
The associates themselves attest to that promise. Caroline Li, who joined Wilkinson Stekloff in September 2021 after clerking in the Eastern District of New York, describes a baptism by fire that captured the firm’s ethos from her very first day. “I joined the firm on a Tuesday morning. I came to the D.C. office for onboarding, got my laptop, and then by noon I was on a flight to Los Angeles to go to my first trial — Clark v. Monsanto.That was just an insane experience for that being my first day at the firm.” That early immersion set the tone for everything that followed. “After that, I have seen every stage of litigation from pre-complaint to discovery, expert discovery, and class certification to the actual lead-up to the trial. I have done a lot of substantive work here as an associate.”
Deon McCray joined the firm in April 2024 after clerking for Judge Richard M. Gergel in the District of South Carolina. He began his career at a large firm where his work was primarily limited to document review. McCray was drawn to a model that matched the intensity and responsibility he had experienced in chambers. “‘One of the reasons we love it here is because all of our work is really important,’ McCray says. ‘Most of us have clerked, doing important work in the federal justice system. So, [with] that experience, we cannot then go back to having to submit emails for review. We just cannot go back to that.’ McCray first learned of Wilkinson Stekloff when its lawyers appeared before Gergel’s court for a product liability case involving aqueous filmforming foams. ‘That’s how I was introduced to them. Near the end of my clerkship, I was like, I am going to go work there.’”
The firm’s alternative fee structures reinforce the philosophy of early development, and extends to how associates interact with clients. “At Wilkinson Stekloff ‘The clients benefit because if we bring the associates to the strategy meetings, the clients are not paying by the person; they are paying for the work that we do,’ Wilkinson says. ‘And they know that our associates are more strategic and better when they really understand what is going on in the case.’” By freeing associates from the constraints of the billable hour, the firm has created an environment where young lawyers can focus on learning the case inside and out instead of worrying about what they will get credit for. That alignment between associate development and client service reflects the true value the firm brings: immeasurable commitment to winning.
The firm’s results speak for themselves. Recent landmark results for clients such as Microsoft, the NFL, the NCAA, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise have been built on the contributions of associates who were able to step up based on the substantive responsibility given them from the start. “As the firm marks its 10th anniversary this year, Stekloff says he is most proud of [these] people who have turned it into a success story. ‘We have built this place where people support each other, have grace with each other, teach each other, and really care about each other. We have also proven that if you have a diverse workforce, you can succeed. You can represent the most important companies in their most important matters in a very diverse group, led by an incredible woman. That says a lot.’”