Happy Bar Results Video Goes Viral
When lawyers and law students go viral, it's usually not a good thing. But that's not the case for DePaul Law School grad Arielle Williams, who went viral when she checked her July 2018 bar results.
In case you haven't seen the video, no, she didn't sneak a camera into the exam room or anything crazy. Williams was at work at a Chicago area firm when her bar results came in. A paralegal at the firm starts filming right as Williams opens her results, and she almost immediately falls to the ground. Fortunately, it's quickly discovered that the tears and collapse were due to joy and then celebratory cheering erupts. And while the video may be fun to watch, there's much more to Ms. Williams' story that'll inspire and warm the heart.
From Englewood to In the Bar
Thanks to local TV news covering local viral videos these days, Arielle, and the firm she works at, was visited by the local CBS station, for background information.
Apparently, Arielle has a lot more to be happy about than what we can see in the short Facebook video. She attributes much of her success to the drive and determination that she learned from the adversity her family faced growing up with socioeconomic challenges. While earning her undergrad and graduate degrees, before law school, she worked two jobs. She's clearly no stranger to struggle and hard work, and success.
Vexatious Viral Video
For the most part, law students, new lawyers, and all lawyers (for that matter), should do everything in their powers to avoid accidentally going viral.
Unlike Arielle's story, most of the time, going viral is not good. The public is not a big fan of lawyers, generally, and if any of the lawyer jokes you've doubtlessly heard have clued you in to the public's sentiments (which have been around since at least Shakespeare), you know very well that seeing a lawyer's reputation destroyed (or worse) is something the public thirsts for. Fortunately for the soon to be sworn in Attorney Arielle Williams, going viral has been a good thing that has inspired many others.
Related Resources:
- 7 Non-Law Firm Jobs That are Good for Law Students (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- 5 Cool #LawTwitter Profs for Law Students to Follow (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- The 4 Best Resources for a Law Student's Tool Kit (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)