From UC College of Law to San Antonio, Texas

Amberle Lesch, a 2013 alumna of Cincinnati Law, spoke with us about her career journey, which has taken her from law school in Cincinnati to San Antonio, Texas, where she works in the legal department of Nationwide Insurance.

UC Law offered a good variety of courses, so I not only learned to think and reason like a lawyer but I also gained some practical skills along the way. There were also opportunities to enhance my education outside the classroom. For instance, serving as a Fellow with the Weaver Institute of Law and Psychiatry exposed me to an a unique area of law that many don't have the opportunity to learn about or experience. Collectively, all those things provided a solid foundation to enter my legal practice.

As a law student and as a young lawyer, I did not have a specific area of law that I knew I wanted to focus on, so overall, I was open-minded about where my career might go. Upon graduation from UC Law, I joined a boutique law firm focused on commercial litigation. The work was challenging, interesting and I learned something new every day. I initially planned on spending several years at a law firm, if not my whole career. However, I had the opportunity early on to transition to an in-house lawyer role at Nationwide and I decided to pursue that path. I've been in-house counsel practicing in the area of property and casualty insurance ever since and I hope to be able to spend the rest of my career in-house.

At its core, insurance is about protecting people and businesses and helping them recover after a loss. In my role at Nationwide, although I do not interact directly with consumers, the work I do certainly helps support and further that mission in all the communities Nationwide serves.

In my experience, intangible skills are what set you apart. I think the desire to continuously learn, emotional intelligence and good communication are some important traits.

I have a one-year old daughter who is growing up in a flash and although we haven't been able to do much of it during COVID, our family loves to travel on our days off from work. Whether we visit the beach, the mountains, a new city, etc., experiencing new places along with and through the eyes of a young child is pretty amazing.

Featured Image: Sean Pavone/iStock Photo