From Long Shot to Law School

“I always thought law school was a long shot,” says Daniel Kassl ’27.

After his family’s financial struggles while Kassl was growing up, law school seemed like a pipe dream—until he found Chicago-Kent College of Law.

“I remember the first thing I read about Chicago-Kent—that it was founded as Chicago’s working-class law school,” he says. “The generous financial aid package, which made law school possible for a first-generation law student like me, and the warm welcome from the community after my acceptance sealed the deal.”

Kassl is a part of Chicago-Kent’s Honors Scholars program, which includes a full scholarship and extra faculty attention for the most talented and motivated students. He says the funding is what allowed him to pursue his dream of being a lawyer.

“I feel Chicago-Kent has managed to avoid the pretentiousness that the law often carries and that dissuades students from underrepresented backgrounds,” he says. “That’s important to me because I feel like I can be myself here and more freely develop and explore my own identity as a first-generation college and law student.”

Kassl is also pleased with the academics at Chicago-Kent. He feels the faculty have prepared him well to begin practicing after passing the bar.

“Chicago-Kent is a practice- and career-focused law school,” he says. “In my experience, this means the coursework prioritizes preparing us to be actual lawyers.”

He attributes much of the career-readiness to Chicago-Kent’s five-year legal writing requirement—the first in the nation.  In particular, Kassl credits Visting Assistant Professor Paul Rogerson, his first-year legal writing professor, for emphasizing skills that judges value in their courtrooms.

“The legal writing program here is outstanding,” he says. “It’s integrated deeply into our courses, and by graduation many of us will have written several appellate briefs at the law school—not just as part of externships or internships.”

Kassl is currently working at the second job he has held during school—an externship for a district judge at the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. He first completed an internship at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois, where he helped write winning motions and memoranda in criminal and civil cases brought by the U.S.

“I was part of trial teams that secured full jury convictions against two violent carjackers and a serial bank fraudster,” he says. “That internship was one of the most valuable practical experiences I could ever hope for, and I’m a better legal writer as a result.”

Kassl also recently finished a term as president of the American Constitution Society and was recently elected president of the Moot Court Honor Society. He wants to continue to stay active and engaged with his law school community after he graduates.

“I hope to make an impact on Chicago’s lively legal community,” he says. “I love this city deeply. There’s a great need here for pro bono legal services and leadership in the legal field [that] I hope to help address, and that involves remembering the law school that made this career possible for me.”