The Benefits of Job Shadowing

Marcus Mitchell

When Regent Law 1L Marcus Mitchell came to Rosey Mellion, Associate Director of Law School Career and Alumni Services, asking about how to get more knowledge about criminal defense work, Rosey had the perfect match. Mitchell was already externing with a local law office, and he wanted to pursue another opportunity to work with an attorney.

Rosey encouraged Marcus to contact Regent Law alumnus Stephen Pfeiffer (’07) to see if Marcus could “shadow” Stephen for a day. Job shadowing is a chance to experience a day in the life of an attorney who works in a field of interest. “I wanted to foster Marcus's enthusiasm to network and experience the practice of law outside of the classroom,” said Rosey, “and I believe that through their interaction, that Stephen’s reputation and success will be an added inspiration for Marcus. With his self-driven initiative, Marcus will leverage his network into an amazing career.”

Stephen Pfeiffer is a partner at Wolcott Rivers Gates, one of the largest and most reputable law firms in Virginia Beach. There, Stephen practices primarily in criminal defense on the state and federal levels, but he specializes in DUI defense and is known by many as the “go-to lawyer” for DUI/DWI in his area. He was glad to help Marcus.

The two met one Friday morning, where Marcus saw Stephen go into action right away. “He got continuances on DUI cases, and then settled an assault and battery case between two parties.” But the third DUI case was what stood out to Marcus. Marcus said, “After watching some attorneys before him get their case shot down because they were unprepared for the judge's questions, [Stephen] was completely the opposite. He had multiple cases from the appellate level and had the appropriate statutes selected to answer the judge's questions without missing a beat. The prosecutor couldn't keep up; all of the charges were dismissed.”

Marcus had the opportunity to meet one of the judges, and after court, talk with Stephen about law school. Stephen shared his experience at Regent and gave Marcus tips and contacts to reach out to for additional shadowing experience.

“Overall, it was a great experience,” said Marcus. “I'm glad I had the opportunity to do it.”