Category: GEMA, GEMA Externship

Title:GEMA Externship: Where Are They Now? Marissa Mulligan (C’14, L’17)

Marissa Mulligan (C’14, L’17) is a litigation associate at the law firm Gibson Dunn. She primarily focuses on media and entertainment litigation, including in the areas of breach of contract, profit participation, and defamation.

What was your first “big break”? Or, what is the most significant experience you have had that has made your success possible?

One of the most significant experiences I have had in my field was joining one of my first entertainment matters at Gibson Dunn. When I first joined the firm in 2017, I immediately reached out to the attorneys who did media and entertainment work and expressed my interest. A couple of months later, I was asked to join a matter representing AMC in connection with profit participation lawsuits related to the series The Walking Dead. This was exactly the kind of work I went to law school thinking I wanted to do, and it was the first big matter I worked on in the media and entertainment space.

What was your first job?

I had a number of diverse and short-term positions over the years when I was in high school and college—I interned at Broadway Video, Tablet Magazine, and HarperCollins Publishers over several summers in college. In high school and college, I worked as a writer for an online fashion magazine and was also a part-time copyeditor for a professor in Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business. I knew I was interested in the creative fields, particularly with respect to writing, and I was eager to get different experiences in that space to see what I enjoyed most. My first full time and long-term job was as an associate attorney at Gibson Dunn, where I work now.

What do you do in your job now? What is your favorite part of your current position?

I work as a litigation attorney at a law firm, Gibson Dunn. I have done different commercial litigation work, but my primary focus is on media and entertainment litigation, specifically profit participation litigation, as well as defamation and related First Amendment work. I love that every day of the job is different. Every case has so many unique needs at one time, which means no day is quite the same as the last, and keeps things interesting. I do a lot of trial level work and enjoy the diverse daily experiences that come with that—witness interviews, depositions, drafting, arguments. There is a lot of variety.

What was the externship experience like for you? Did it have an influence on your career/help kickstart your career?

The externship experience I had in college was wonderful. It really helped me think about the different career paths I could take given my interest in the media and entertainment field. The great thing about the process is that you meet with so many different people who have explored that same passion in different ways, so it allowed me to picture the various ways my career could play out.

What part(s) of the Externship did you find most valuable?

Meeting different people and making contacts. Everyone I paired up with through the program was friendly, eager to help, and happy to stay in touch.

What was your experience like attending Georgetown? Were there any particularly formative experiences that were special to you?

I loved Georgetown. I think it is a wonderful place to go to school, and I met so many incredible people there. When I was studying there, I was part of a small group of students who were in a film and media studies minor, which gave me even more of an opportunity to explore my interests. When I went to Georgetown Law, I stayed involved with GEMA’s law chapter, and served as President of GEMA-Law for two years.

What’s your advice for an undergraduate trying to break into your industry? Is there anything you would tell your younger self now?

Be open to different career paths. There are so many different ways to explore an interest in the “industry,” particularly now. If you take the time to meet with people, see what they do, and how they explored their interest in this field, you might stumble upon an interesting area of this industry you didn’t know about.

Name someone in your career who has been a valuable mentor or role model to you and why?

It would be far too difficult to mention one! Many people I work with at Gibson Dunn have had a significant impact on me. Not only are these truly some of the smartest people I have ever interacted with, they are humble. They know what it means to work hard, and they also know what it means to be good people. They continually demonstrate how to strike the right balance between having an incredible career and valuably contributing to their communities and families. Having these people as mentors in my life has taught me how to embody that role for others. They have taken a true interest in my career and professional development and have tried to give me every opportunity to do the kind of work I am passionate about.

 

To read other “GEMA Externship: Where Are They Now?” posts, click here.