When Andrew Jackson started working in the mailroom at Appleby, he dreamed of one day arguing cases on behalf of the law firm in a courtroom.
Fast forward 17 years, and not only is Jackson making regular appearances in court, he is now one of Appleby’s first Caymanian partners in dispute resolution, a milestone he is quite proud of as it is not a popular field of study locally.
“I think most litigators would say it probably takes kind of a special type of person to be attracted to being on the sort of sharp end of the law and arguing cases in court. I think there’s probably a few handfuls of Caymanians that have gone into law that have chosen this route [of dispute resolution,]” Jackson said in a recent interview with the Cayman Compass.
The 36-year-old father of one said he wants to see more Caymanians entering his field of expertise.
“I think corporate practice, property practice… transactional type work, things that don’t involve going to court, tend to attract the vast majority of Caymanians that are coming into the field,” he said, but added there is room for growth and upward movement in areas like dispute resolution.
The path to law
As he looked back on his 11-and-a-half year legal career, Jackson said the months he spent in the Appleby mailroom help set him on a journey to partner at the firm.
He joined Appleby as a mailroom clerk when he was fresh out of sixth form, he said.
“I spent 15 months in there and it certainly allowed me time to, I guess, realise that I wanted to do something a little bit more challenging. It also afforded me the opportunity to get to know a number of lawyers in the team and to… have chats with them about what they enjoyed about their work and what made it interesting,” he said.
It was his time there and those conversations that would set him on a path to pursue law.
“It was time very well spent,” he said, adding that, after heading off to law school, the connections he made at the firm came in handy along the way.
Growing up, he said, he always loved watching shows like ‘Matlock’ and ‘Law and Order’ where attorneys would be on their feet arguing cases in court.
“I’m told, anyway, I was something of a debater from the time that I was a small child. One of my kindergarten teachers, I think, told my mom that I was certainly gonna be a lawyer. So maybe it was fate,” Jackson said.
He secured a scholarship at the firm thanks to his hard work there and was able to pursue his dream to fight cases in court.
He encouraged young Caymanians to grasp every opportunity that comes their way, whether it’s an internship or an entry-level post, as it could lead to something special.
“We do a lot of internships and I think those are very valuable, as well. But even if it isn’t an internship in… a more glorified department, getting a foot in the door in any capacity can set you in motion to achieve bigger and better things. No job is too small,” he said.
He suggested that young Caymanians studying law or thinking of a legal career should reach out to local firms and start building connections early on.
“Before you even embark on law school… get into the scholarship programme. Then, if you do well in your studies, [it] pretty well secures you a position as an articled clerk rather than waiting until you’ve got the legal degree or the LLB and the legal practice certificate” and then looking for a position, he said.
Hard work pays off
He said sharing his success story is important to him because it shows that hard work does pay off.
“I think it is quite important for young Caymanians to really see that someone like me, who has come through the process and has been recently promoted to partner… at one of the island’s leading firms to not think that this is unattainable – if you put in the requisite amount of effort,” Jackson said.
The Savannah resident said he is happy to offer advice and chat with law students considering a career in his field as it is something he loves.
“I think, as with anything, you need to pursue a career that you’re going to be able to be passionate about, if it’s something that you’re planning to commit half your life to,” he said.
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