William! Thank you very much for joining me for the Hot Bench this week. It’s really great to have you. So, tell me a little bit about yourself. Where are you from and where did you go to undergrad?
Thank you, Brad! My name is William Lee. I was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska and I went to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor for undergrad, as well as a master’s degree. I’ve progressively kept moving a little further east and a little further south.
You’ve started the great crescent of migration . . . what did you study at Michigan?
My undergrad was a Bachelor of Business Administration, and I followed that up with a Master of Accounting at the same institution. I learned the nuts and bolts of financial and tax accounting, as well as gained an introduction to operations, to finance, and to business law. This helped drive my decision to come to law school—to learn the interplay between law and business and to find my place in it.
That’s good stuff. What compelled you to leave Alaska and head to the great state of Michigan?
Alaska has several good local schools, but I always knew in my heart that I wanted to leave and go see the country, meet people from across the United States. I applied everywhere, coast to coast and a lot of places in between. I had never even been to the Midwest before I signed the offer to go to Michigan. They had people from all fifty states, and it felt like a place where I could thrive. It felt right in my heart to say Go Blue.
We’re in the same section, and your introductory “fun fact” was that through Alaska public schools, you participated in extracurricular competitive miming. Can you tell me a little about that?
Sure! I competed and performed as a mime for three years in High School. Alaska is the only state that has pantomime as an event competition. We have long winters, and mime was a great way to tell stories during the months of darkness. I was a member of the debate team, and drama events were incorporated into the same tournaments, as we’re a smaller community, so initially it was a way for me to fill time between debate rounds. But I connected with the art form and found two other guys to mime with, and together we performed awesome stories, such as a bank robbery with a car chase. It was a lot of fun!
OK, now the lightning round! What is your perfect weekend?
My perfect weekend starts with a board game night. I like to meet my friends outside of class, play some cards, play some Settlers of Catan. I’d like to follow it up with a local hike, maybe in Shenandoah. I think time outdoors helps ground us. And then I like to start Sunday with a great brunch. Nothing is better than black coffee and an omelet in my eyes, best accompanied with the local paper, the Virginia Law Weekly.
Ha, thanks for the plug! What’s a movie adaptation they haven’t made yet, but you want to see?
Now that is a fascinating question. I really enjoyed a fantasy series known as The Dresden Files. It’s about a detective wizard in modern-day Chicago who solves cases and makes an impact on both magical and non-magical communities. I came across it when I was getting back into reading for fun during the Covid years of college. It brought me joy and showed me how unconventional thinking and magical intuition can help people with real-world problems.
I also read The Dresden Files. I would love an adaptation of that. Which piece of public art at the Law School is your favorite?
My favorite piece is the big painting with the sheep on it [Follow the Leader by John Borden Evans, in Brown Hall]. I like its natural beauty, and I think it helps us question whether we too are sheep.
Very philosophical, I like that answer! OK, last question. What is your favorite experience at the Law School so far?
I’ve loved pretty much every second of it. I think probably the first weekend. We’d had three days of classes, and that Friday I had four of my section mates over at my apartment, and we were playing euchre. After six years in the Midwest, I wanted to kick back, play some cards, and make new friends. And when we were in between hands, I remember thinking, “We’ve got three full years ahead of us. I can’t believe we’re in Virginia. It’s such a privilege to be here.” In that moment I felt right in my decision to come here, and that these are going to be lasting friendships and relationships. It’s an awesome thing to experience.
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Interviewed by Brad Berklich '27