The Forum has always been a warm, welcoming, and inviting community in which colleagues—and even competitors—genuinely like each other, which makes it the best platform to learn and develop together. The legal profession is founded upon principles of integrity, justice, and continuous learning. We can do all of that and enjoy ourselves at the Forum.
We do not just focus on ourselves. One of the most effective ways to sustain these values and ensure the profession’s evolution is through the mentorship and support of law students by seasoned lawyers. This relationship not only benefits the mentees but also enriches the mentors and the legal field. At the Forum, we excel at developing the pipeline of future members of the aviation and space bars.
Our Scholarship programs introduce law students to aerospace professional circles, thereby expanding their networks and increasing their chances of securing meaningful employment upon graduation. When students tap into these professional networks, doors to numerous opportunities are opened, from internships to job placements. We feature our law students in Forum programs, encourage them to address conference attendees, and provide them with opportunities to meet with keynote speakers and other leaders in government, private industry, and the aviation and space bars. Opportunities to participate in the Forum and other ABA events help students to develop the soft skills that are crucial for building and maintaining client relationships and succeeding in collaborative environments. These connections can provide long-term benefits as students transition into their careers, offering ongoing support and guidance.
A success story of the Scholarship Program is Cozen O’Connor Member Rachel Welford, leader on the Forum’s Governing Committee. “The ABA Forum on Air and Space Law Scholarship Program provided me with an invaluable opportunity to network with and learn from the best of the best in the aviation bar. In terms of my legal career, I feel like I grew up in the Forum—first as a scholarship recipient as a law student, then as the law student liaison, young lawyer chair, scholarship chair, and now as a member of the Governing Committee. I am thrilled to see the Forum is continuing its excellent work of encouraging new lawyers to pursue a legal career in such an exciting field,” she says.
At the 2024 Annual Conference in California, we featured ABA Law Student Liaison Mack Freilich, a 3L at George Mason University, and Law Student Scholarship recipient Adam Soliman, a 2L at Georgetown University Law Center. Both students actively participated throughout the conference, sharing their interests and drive to be involved in aerospace law. I was a proud Forum mama watching these young minds engage, network, and pitch in behind the scenes and work with the Program Committee. Looking forward to watching them soar!
Adam also took advantage of the opportunity to write for this issue of The Air & Space Lawyer and to share his impressions of the venture capital-themed panel, “The Importance of Funding Big Ideas in Aerospace,” from the Annual Conference. Both Adam and Mack seek to partner with our members to write additional pieces for The AS&L in the upcoming year—so let me know if you are interested in working with these or other law students on an article.
Throughout the Annual Conference’s two-day program, panelists and other speakers highlighted the important work our members do with law students. Personally, I was extremely lucky to have mentors in this industry throughout my career. During our “Naughty Actors on Planes” panel discussion, I shared my home video from when I was a 2L defending a case on the original People’s Court television show. Past Forum member, Ben Hirst, a legendary airline general counsel and aviation regulator, was one of my first mentors. As a law clerk, he put me to the test defending an actual case in front of Judge Wapner, “Coffee, Tea or Mayhem.” It turned out to be my only career first chair case, and my 15 minutes of TV fame, but I was locked into the “You won’t believe this happened,” of aviation law.
Program Co-Chair for the Annual Conference, Dr. Renee Martin-Nagle, originally set up the Forum’s Scholarship Program when she was Chair of the Forum in 2006. During the conference, Renee shared how the Scholarship Program flourished to the next level under the leadership of the late, great Andrea Brantner, the first chair of the Scholarship Program. We also remembered Andrea, our friend and a mentor to so many in our industry, at the conference. Several of those she mentored shared their stories in this remembrance video. The common theme from all the speakers in the remembrance video was her giving back, mentoring, and lifting others up, especially law students.
There were many incredible mentors in my career who had an influence on me, including Andrea Brantner. It was her conjuring and mentoring that paved the way for me to serve as the Chair of this great Forum. She promised to continue to mentor me while in this role, and I know she has not broken that promise and is watching from above, encouraging us all to continue to support the next generation of air and space lawyers. So please follow Andrea’s lead and engage with our law students at the next Forum event, co-author a The Air & Space Lawyer article with them, or ask a law student to work on a committee with you.
Equally as important, please sponsor the Forum as it is our sponsors that underwrite our Scholarship Program, which allows us to bring law students to Air & Space programs and events. Thank you to the 20-plus sponsors supporting us for the Annual Conference—including several first-time sponsors. At the upcoming Air & Space Finance conference, December 4 in New York City, we are offering a unique opportunity for firms to bring their summer associate or first-year associate class to the event. We will toast on Andrea’s focus on law students and young lawyers. Click here for information and to register.
In closing, I want to reiterate Andrea’s motto that represents our special Forum community so well —“Here for Fun!”—which will never die at the Forum on Air & Space Law.