MORE ABOUT GEORGE
Graduation Date: May 2008
Hometown: Palos Hills, Illinois
Undergraduate School: DePaul University
Awards & Achievements:
- President, Student Bar Association
- Commencement Speaker, College of Commerce Graduation, June 2004
- Co-Chair, Koraes Alumni Association
- President's Award for Community Service, 2001-2005
Campus Involvement:
- President, SBA; ABA Self-Study Committee Member, 2007-2008;
- Faculty Representative, Curriculum Representative, Technology Representative, Faculty Recruitment Representative, 2006-2007
- Treasurer, Federalist Society, 2006-2007
Current Employment:
- Clerk, Law Office of Robert Lattas
George Lattas
Area of Study:JD/MBA
I chose to study law because... becoming an attorney is something that I knew that I wanted to do from the time that I was quite young. As I grew older and progressed through my education, this sentiment was galvanized when I fully understood that attorneys are uniquely placed in our society to affect social change. Today, I know that graduating with a JD and passing the bar is at the foundation of my career path and can assist me in pursuing my ultimate goal of getting involved in politics in some capacity.
I decided to attend DePaul College of Law because... I had a tremendous experience at DePaul as an undergraduate and so it was natural that I would apply to the College of Law. In the end, I selected the College of Law for the same reasons that I attended DePaul as an undergraduate: having Chicago as our backyard, small classes and the Vincentian mission of the university.
The learning environment here at DePaul is... conducive to actual learning because the atmosphere is collegial and the student community is unique. I often comment how you are led to believe that law school is so cutthroat, with your peers razoring out pages out of books and not willing to help when there is confusion. This does not happen at DePaul. In my experience, my peers always make themselves available, are approachable and have truly enriched my learning experience.
The law class I have most enjoyed here... constitutional law.
When I have free time, I like to... I don’t really have free time — between class, work and being president of the Student Bar Association — but in my down time, I like to read or relax with friends.
One thing I didn’t know about DePaul before coming was... the incredible number of judges that have come through the College of Law.
Here, the diversity of students, faculty and staff... are critical to our success as a law school and as a university in general. Our university is a fair microcosm of greater societsawaly. The real value of this diversity is captured in the classroom, where different points of view from diverse ethnic, racial and religious backgrounds elucidate the law and legal decisions.
For DePaul College of Law students, Chicago is... probably the most important asset that we have in the law school. Being in the center of one of the world’s major metropolises, with access to our incredible cultural centers and one of the biggest legal markets in the world benefits all students who attend the college.
DePaul’s College of Law is different from other law schools because... For many reasons. First, the atmosphere among the student body is different from most other law schools. We pride ourselves on being collegial, approachable and able to have fun outside the classroom. We’re also an institution on the rise. The College of Law has seen a remarkable increase in national rankings and is getting attention for the work that we do in our clinics and institutes. Finally, the College of Law is different from many other law schools in that it is part of the DePaul system and students have the opportunity to obtain not only their JD, but also their MBA from a top 10 business school, or an MA or LLM.
The instructors at DePaul's College of Law are... are vested in the success of their students. The professors are all tremendous academicians who have published important literature on their areas of expertise, but they are more than that. Professors at DePaul are involved with their classes and engage their students as educators, often going beyond what is expected to ensure that students have an opportunity to completely understand the course materials.
My greatest success has been... my academic accomplishments. I double majored as an undergraduate as a member of the Honors Finance cohort and economics, and am getting a JD/MBA in graduate school. I have attempted to distinguish myself through institutional service and serve as the president of the Student Bar Association. I am very proud of the work that we have done so far this year and am excited for what we plan on doing before I graduate.
After graduation, I plan to... hang up my own shingle and practice law in the city.
The one thing I’d like to say to students considering DePaul College of Law... Visit the universities that you are considering and talk to the students there outside of the campus tour environment. You’ll find that the College of Law at DePaul is unique in that you’re quite literally in the middle of Chicago, surrounded by hard-working, sharp colleagues, being taught by brilliant professors in an atmosphere that is unique.
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