Like many others, Christopher Earley ‘04 was unsure of what to do after college and ended up exploring law school by happenstance. “I decided it was a good place to figure out what I wanted to do,” he explains. He believes that sometimes people stumble into unexpected opportunities that lead them in fortuitous directions; this was certainly the case for him. “It ended up working out really well, so I’m grateful for that stumble,” he adds. But, while he has many fond memories of his time at New England Law | Boston, he also had some struggles. “I was very motivated because I was scared about law school. I was intimidated,” he says, and shares how his fellow students’ commitment to success made it easy for him to strive for success too. His professors taught him well, but they also challenged him, something Earley actually welcomed. “That’s what I needed, to kind of scare me a little bit,” he adds that sometimes a little fear is good (“not too much, but a healthy amount!”).
New England Law prepared him well to take and pass the Bar Exam. But once he began his job search, Earley found himself wondering exactly what to do next. That was when he met a colleague who suggested he was best suited for entrepreneurship. “So that’s what I did,” he says. In 2005, ready to make an opportunity for himself that he could not find elsewhere, he established the Earley Law Group.
Earley’s determination and hard work paid off as he continued to grow his firm. “I was a sole proprietor, just me and an assistant for a number of years,” he notes, but when the COVID-19 pandemic upended the world, Earley saw another opportunity. “I decided to scale and grow the organization to what it is now. We have almost twenty people. Now, it’s a legitimate business, as opposed to just a job I had.” Earley is proud that Earley Law Group has grown into a place where his staff can build careers and flourish as professionals. Though the landscape is always changing, it is a challenge Earley is always ready to meet. “I’m super grateful to lead the organization, to bring it to its next iteration. I still have cases, and I love handling cases, but I really do love the business side of law.”
As Earley’s firm has grown and evolved, so has the world around him, and he has been ready to adapt. Today, many firms, like his own, are remote while others run hybrid or in-person, and Earley believes a law firm that is nimble and versatile will be at a competitive advantage, attracting both employees and clients whose personal and professional needs can be met in a variety of ways. Earley also highlights advances in automation and artificial intelligence as a great boon to the field and his work, but this can also bring challenges. “I think it’s never been easier to start a practice because we have all these toys at our disposal that we can utilize,” he begins, but this makes the landscape even more competitive. “I think it’s harder now because there are more people coming into the space.” However, even though the landscape is constantly evolving, it is a profession he is grateful to have.
When Earley returns to New England Law in November for his fourth Career Forum, he looks forward to sharing the highs and lows of his career to give students an honest perspective. “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve found I love mentoring students and sharing all the things I did wrong so they can avoid those mistakes,” he explains, but it is important to highlight a few wins along the way. If he could, he would tell his 1L self to start networking and forming connections with both legal professionals and fellow students. Earley sees the Career Forum as a great opportunity for students to leverage these valuable opportunities. Another thing he would tell his IL self? Approach studying like a job. “I studied a lot but was sort of haphazard with it, but I should have been more strategic, more intentional with my time management,” he explains. With all the insight he and his fellow alumni have to share, Earley knows it will be a worthwhile event for students. “I think they will walk out thinking, ‘I’m really glad I went. It was a really good use of my time.’”
Years from now, Earley hopes to be remembered for the opportunities he created for those he works with, and for giving them the tools they needed to thrive and grow. He also wants to give back to the community: “I stand on the shoulders of so many people who helped me along my path.” He explains how he has accumulated enough mistakes and experiences to provide guidance for future professionals in the legal field, especially with the path he forged for himself. “I think it happened for a reason. We are where we are based on the way it should be,” Earley says, and reiterates his gratitude for the career he has had. “It’s a hard profession, but a worthy one.”