Note to Law Students: Consider a Career in Privacy Law

George Washington University Law School. Photo by Shutterstock.com

Law schools eager to help their graduates navigate a competitive job market are increasingly pointing students toward practice areas involving technology.

In alignment with this trend, the George Washington University Alumni Association's Programs Subcommittee is set to host a panel for current and recent graduates of the George Washington University Law School encouraging students to take a step into data privacy practices.

The panel, “Getting Stated in Privacy Law,” will be hosted by Howard Reissner, CEO of e-discovery group Planet Data, and will feature four panelists: Debra Bromson, assistant general counsel at AAA Club Alliance; Margaret Gloecke, vice president of privacy and compliance counsel at A+E Networks; Ashley Slavik, senior counsel and data protection officer at Veeva Systems Inc.; and Laura Schmidt, associate at White and Williams.

“We're in a very challenging time now for recent grads in law. It's a rough market out there,” Reissner told LTN. Especially given the prominence and frequency of major data breaches at technology, financial and health care organizations, Reissner said that privacy law may provide a core competency for an increasing number of emerging legal practitioners.

“We think you could not today have a more timely topic that every recent grad should be able be at least conversant on,” he said.

Bromson, who started her career in IT contracting law and worked her way into privacy law through the pharmaceutical industry, said there isn't just one way to this practice area.

“There's a lot of ways to do this. All law schools now have classes in this area,” she said. Even if a particular law school doesn't have particularly strong privacy and data curriculum, many core issues in data privacy can be self-taught. “So many law firms have released information, so you could just do some research on it and watch it. So much of the law is now online.”

Outside of simply developing a legal niche, Bromson identified some key benefits of working in the data privacy space. “Given the exposure of and use of personal information and confidential information in all areas of a business, one of the best things about privacy law and one of the attractions to me was the ability to work with a wide range of customers in lots of different areas of your business. You really develop a true understanding of the business,” Bromson said.

There are a few “juicy topics” Bromson saw for potential legal work. The impending start date for the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU, she said, is likely to beef up companies' need to assess and comply, creating some potential opportunities for new privacy attorneys. Additionally, the growth of internet of things (IoT) applications in both commercial and enterprise applications may present exciting opportunities for newer attorneys in the space.

Bromson also noted that working on data breach response is likely to be a growing area for new privacy attorneys. “If they're going to a law firm, outside counsel has a key role in data breaches to be able to protect legal privacy,” Bromson added.