Trevor Floyd
Hometown: Conway, South Carolina
Who I was then: I graduated from Clemson University in 2015 with a double major in political science and theater. My intention when I started college was to go to law school, but I diverted from that plan and spent five years making theater and working for a professional nonprofit theater in the San Francisco Bay Area. Some people think that is a strange route, but it has always made sense to me. Theater is about empathy, community and examining who we are to one another and why people behave the way they do, and the law is one of the most important things that binds society together and defines our relationships with one another. It’s all about people.
Amazing law school class: I was fortunate to be able to take many excellent classes at UVA Law, learning from professors and peers alike. There were some that I enjoyed simply because they had the perfect mix of interesting material and an excellent, engaging professor, like Antitrust with Thomas Nachbar, Evidence with Michael Collins, Employment Law with Rip Verkerke and Civil Rights Litigation with Thomas Frampton. My favorite class, however, was After Dobbs, a short course taught in the fall of 2022 by Anne Coughlin, Naomi Cahn and Bonnie Gordon that focused on the immediacy and severity of the issues faced by women and trans men seeking health care in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. We spoke with real-world health practitioners and politicians, generated small bits of scholarship attempting to cover the vast array of issues suddenly facing hundreds of millions of Americans, and had invaluably honest in-class conversations that will stick with me throughout my life and career.
Outside class: I had the opportunity to be involved in several great student organizations and programs while at UVA Law. I was the programming chair for the Lambda Law Alliance, the co-chair of the Admissions Student Life Panels, an admissions ambassador and a member of excellent groups like Virginia Law First Generation Professionals, OWLs and many others. I also got the chance to be a Peer Advisor during my 2L and 3L years, which was a lot of fun as I got to know the incoming classes from the beginning and watch as they thrived throughout 1L and beyond. Working with Admissions was a particular highlight because one of the main reasons I picked UVA Law was all of the great things I heard from students they connected me with after I was admitted, and having the opportunity to pay that forward was incredibly rewarding.
Favorite outing/activity to unwind: It’s cliché around here, but softball was something I always looked forward to. My section stayed together and fielded a team all three years, and although we didn’t manage to win as many games as years we played, it was always a good time. Beyond that, it would not be uncommon to catch me going to see a movie with my partner, taking a day trip to D.C. or drinking a frozen margarita the size of my head at Plaza Azteca down the street.
Noteworthy summer job: My first summer I worked for a great firm called Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton out of their Atlanta office. Except only sort of out of their Atlanta office, because it was just after COVID vaccines became available and things were still largely remote. Since I could work from anywhere, my partner and I decided to spend the first half of the summer living in a remote cabin in Vermont (with excellent wi-fi). A great way to beat the heat, but not a great way to beat the FOMO when the world starts opening up faster than you expected and you’re ready to be around people again. We made it down to Atlanta for the second half of the summer, and I ate more fried chicken in a month than any one person probably should in a lifetime.
What’s next: (job/location) After spending the summer studying for the New York bar exam in Charlottesville, I’ll be moving to New York City and working in the antitrust group at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. I spent my 2L summer with Skadden and left knowing without a doubt that it was the right firm and the right location for me to get started with my legal career.
Who I am now: I often tell people I needed my five years away from school to grow up, but looking back, I realize that growth never stopped. Law school has, for the better, completely reshaped the way I think about the world, simultaneously making me a more cautious, critical thinker while further deepening my sense of empathy. I have been able to meet some of the smartest, kindest, most interesting people I will ever know during my time here and they have taught me so much that I will carry forward with me forever.
What you should know about Virginia Law: Forget everything you’ve heard or think you might know about it. Your time here will be purely what you and your classmates make of it, and you get to choose what kind of experience you have. The most important thing is just to make that choice. Go on that hike, go to that party, join that study group, play softball, hang out with that friend you made walking home after your Contracts class, and figure out who you’re going to be for three years here. UVA Law is broad enough and welcoming enough that you can find your people and make it your own. There is no right or wrong way to do it. Just make the choice!