Foreseeability
On May 14, 2017, I landed at Dulles airport on my way back from a deeply-impactful, two-week-long trip to Greece. By the time the plane touched down, I had made two important decisions. First, I would leave work early to spend three more weeks traveling Europe. Second, I would try to work in Genève or Den Haag after my 1L year.
Exactly one year later, on May 14, 2018, I landed in Genève, ready to begin my twelve-week internship at International Bridges to Justice.
The timing of these events made me think about foreseeability, a word that has taken on a new level of meaning for me this year. As an analyst an economic and financial litigation consulting firm, I worked with other analysts to perform both quantitative and qualitative analyses that determined whether stock price drops were foreseeable. This year, there were few, if any, numbers involved in my foreseeability analyses. Instead, we asked, “Which consequences would a reasonable person in the defendant’s circumstances be able to predict?” Although the standard seemed simple at first glance, the analysis was complex. Class-wide debates on the parameters of “reasonable” often continued until the Professor decided that we had to move on to another topic. I often left class pondering the reasonableness of my own intuitions about foreseeability. Most of the time, my opinions about reasonableness tracked the courts’ holdings, but my predictions about my own life have, until recently, been less accurate.
Was it reasonable that I did not foresee myself becoming a lawyer until I was almost twenty-three years old? Given that I always have enjoyed logic, reading, writing, and striving to create a more just society, a reasonable person likely would have foreseen that I would go to law school. Many reasonable people, such as my high school AP Government teacher, actually foresaw that I would become a lawyer several years before I came to the same conclusion.
Was it reasonable that I did not foresee how much I would love working abroad until I was almost twenty-three years old? My hesitancy and skepticism likely was unreasonable. I often am at my happiest while traveling, and I love working and living with diverse individuals. My worries about missing my friends and family were overblown. I did not unduly miss my loved ones during the semester I spent abroad, and I already have had years of practice maintaining long distance relationships. Because I prioritize FaceTime calling the people who matter most to me, I can feel close to them even while living on a different continent.
Was it reasonable that I did foresee receiving meaningful work at IBJ? Yes! Based on my own research and all of the positive feedback last year’s W&M interns provided, it was reasonable to foresee that my coworkers would give me significant responsibility. That said, I did not expect to spend my first week drafting an entire contract that complied with Swedish and U.S. legal codes, but I am thrilled that Shaun and I got such a challenging and exciting assignment on my first day at IBJ!
Was it reasonable that I did foresee getting along well with my new coworkers? Yes! I typically connect most deeply with similarly passionate, purpose-driven people. However, no reasonable person would expect the incredible kindness and generosity that I experienced on my birthday. After knowing me for a total of two days, my entire office celebrated my birthday with cake and singing at lunch, and they even gave me a scarf, which you can see in the photo below. IBJ's CEO, Karen, also gave me a tiny Buddha that she picked up during one of her many trips. The lunch celebration alone would have made my birthday special, but several of my coworkers also took me out for drinks and late-night falafel after work, and the extra fun made my twenty-fourth birthday one of my best. Sipping champagne on the banks of Lake Genève while discussing politics and the law with my coworkers and their friends was an experience I will treasure forever. I am immensely grateful to have the privilege of doing such fulfilling work with such wonderful people, and I am looking forward to all of the adventures to come!
Preview of my solo trip to Bern, one of the many places Albert Einstein called home. Scarf courtesy of my new friends at IBJ.
