3L Hailey Winn was a competitive swimmer as a young teen and had her heart set on becoming a marine biologist one day. That dream changed in eighth grade.
“We did a week of dissections for biology, and I ate almost nothing that week. I hated doing dissections and knew that I could not be a marine biologist,” Winn recalls. “Shortly after dissection week, I watched ‘Legally Blonde’ and realized that I might want to be a lawyer. From there, everything pointed towards law school.”
Winn attended Girls State, a political science course for young women to run a mock government, in high school and was elected senator. She enjoyed learning about statutory interpretation and determining ways the statute works for clients, and the experience made her career path more clear.
After earning her bachelor’s degree in history (focusing on the development of the U.S. legal system from the 1500s to present day) at Utah State University, Winn was ready to apply to law school. The S.J. Quinney College of Law was a top pick for several reasons.
“During Admitted Student Day, I loved how friendly everyone was at Utah Law. I felt like the other potential students were excited to meet everyone and connect,” she recalls.
Though her first year of law school was difficult, Winn appreciated her class culture of camaraderie.
“Thankfully, my classmates did not make my life harder. In fact, they made it much easier,” she says. “Everyone is willing to help the people around them learn and grow. I have developed some of my strongest friendships during law school. I met people I just clicked with and absolutely love.”
Shortly after completing her first year of law school, Winn interned at Snow Christensen & Martineau (now merged with Spencer Fane) and began working with attorney Keith Call, who writes a section in the Bar Journal about ethics and civility. During summer 2024, Winn worked at Spencer Fane again and had an opportunity to write with Call.
“When we were in Kansas City for the firm’s summer associate orientation, Keith and I talked about his section, and he mentioned that he wanted someone to co-author an article with him for the July/August edition of the journal,” Winn says. “I told him that I would love to help with it, and I really enjoyed the process of learning about a new topic and learning from Keith.”
The article, “Avoiding Imputed Disqualification with Prospective Clients,” offers tips for avoiding imputing conflicts with colleagues when talking with a prospective client.
“I have loved taking the concepts I learned in school and applying them to real work,” Winn says. “The people at Spencer Fane have been very willing to take the time to teach and mentor me, and they are so fun to work with!”
Her biggest passion is understanding how to use the law to help clients achieve their goals.
“I love figuring out new things and developing new skill sets, so I am excited to start practicing and keep learning,” she says. “I am so proud that I came to law school and have stuck it out, even if I did not always feel confident that I could succeed. I learned that I can accomplish things I never imagined I could do.”
Though she doesn’t have much time outside of school, Winn likes training her dog, playing the piano, reading, and spending time with friends and family when she can. She also logged quite the resumé of odd jobs before beginning law school.
“I’ve worked as a swim instructor, birthday party mermaid, undergraduate teaching assistant, pediatric dental assistant, and bridal consultant (selling wedding dresses),” Winn explains. “So far, I have liked my work in the law the best.”