www.law.uga.edu

News @ Georgia Law Feb. 2011 Student Profile

Name:  Charles A. Brooks
Age:  29
Hometown: Suburbs of Atlanta, Ga.
Graduation Date: December 2010
Georgia Law achievements and awards:  Semifinalist, 2009 Beaird Closing Argument Comp.; Advocate, 2009-10 National Trial Competition Team; Winner, 2009 England Mock Trial Comp.; Recipient, Just the Beginning Foundation and Thurgood Marshall Scholarships; Pupil, 2010-11 Joseph Henry Lumpkin American Inn of Court
Georgia Law extracurricular activities: UGA NTC Mock Trial Team; Black Law Students Association; Phi Alpha Delta
Undergraduate university/degree/year:  Alabama State University/B.A./2004

1. What did you do before attending law school?

• Immediately prior to law school I lived abroad and worked as an English instructor in Osaka, Japan. Prior to my stint abroad, I taught social studies at a public high school for a couple of years in metro Atlanta.

2. Why did you choose to attend Georgia Law?

• Georgia consistently ranks high among the nation's top public law schools and ranks near the top for the cost as compared to the quality of education. The coupling of these facts with the fact that I am a Georgia native steered me to Georgia Law.

3. What inspired you to become a lawyer?

• There are no lawyers in my family, nor did I have the opportunity to meet and know any lawyers growing up, so for me my attraction to the practice of law was initially born out of media portrayals of courtroom drama. My interest was later solidified with my participation and relative success in high school mock trial.

4. Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?

• Ten years from now I hope to be pursuing the Superior Court bench or working as an Assistant U.S. Attorney.

5. Who is your favorite Georgia Law professor? Why?

• Georgia Law has a number of excellent professors, but at the top of my list is Professor Ronald Carlson. Aside from the fact that I really enjoyed the way he presented Evidence and I gained the most from his course, Professor Carlson has a great spirit. He is always upbeat and seems to have a real joy for teaching law through application rather than purely theory.

6. What is your most memorable experience from your time at Georgia Law?

• Winning the 2009 J. Melvin England Mock Trial Competition. The finalists for this competition had previously competed against one another the year prior as semifinalists in the J. Ralph Beaird Closing Argument Competition.

7. What are some activities/clubs/clinics you are involved in at the law school?

• Semifinalist, 2009 J. Ralph Beaird Closing Argument Competition; Advocate, 2009-10 National Trial Competition Team; Winner, 2009 J. Melvin England Mock Trial Competition; Recipient, Just the Beginning Foundation and Thurgood Marshall Scholarships; Pupil, 2010-11 Joseph Henry Lumpkin American Inn of Court.

8. What made you decide to join/enroll in extracurricular activities at the law school?

• I have always been highly involved in multiple extracurricular activities during my educational career and that pattern remained the same in law school.

9. What do you enjoy most about your extracurricular affiliations?

• The opportunity to serve and make my own contribution to the organization's success. It is an honor to serve, whether in a leadership position or subordinate position, and I have had the chance to be both a leader and subordinate and enjoyed both roles.

10. How has this experience affected your career plans?

• With the down economy, it has forced me to really define what kind of legal career would make me happy. I do not have a penchant for transactional work and I love the drama of litigation. I want to deal with regular people with real problems who need help. The place for me is dealing with people, not companies as is often the case in "big firms."

11. What are your hobbies?

• I'm something of a movie enthusiast and I love to travel.

12. What are two things you always have to have with you when you study?

• Water and endurance.