Alumni Spotlight: Matt Bass ‘19L Matt Bass currently works as Employment and Commercial Counsel at Rent the Runway, an e-commerce platform that allows users to rent, subscribe, or buy designer apparel and accessories.

Matt Bass ’19L

Matt Bass ‘19L grew up in Mahopac, New York. He graduated from the University of Delaware in 2016, where he double majored in economics and history, with a minor in advertising. While at W&L Law, Matt served as a managing editor on the Law Review and a lead articles editor on the German Law Journal. He interned for the Honorable Vincent L. Briccetti of the Southern District of New York and Surovell Isaacs & Levy PLC in Fairfax, VA. Upon graduation, Matt spent three years as a labor and employment associate in the White Plains office of Jackson Lewis PC, followed by three years as an Associate Corporate Counsel at Amazon Web Services (AWS) focusing on commercial transactions, data privacy, and competition. Matt currently works as Employment and Commercial Counsel at Rent the Runway. Outside of work, Matt enjoys searching for the world’s best buffalo wing and pint of Guinness, spending time with friends and family, playing golf, and binge-watching TV.

Discuss your career path and how it led you to Rent the Runway.

Entering law school, I wasn’t sure what type of law I wanted practice or whether I wanted to be in a courtroom or focus on transactions. I had an initial interest in family law, but I wanted to see what caught my attention 1L year. Still undecided, I pursued an internship with a judge my 1L summer to enhance my writing and critical thinking skills, and to expose myself to as many different areas of law as possible. Similarly, I spent my 2L summer at a small firm where I had the freedom to work with several attorneys spanning various practice areas. During both summers I found myself most drawn to the labor and employment cases, but I still enjoyed corporate work as well.

I took the Labor and Employment (L&E) practicum my 3L fall. It became clear that this area was what I wanted practice in, and ultimately, I chose to join Jackson Lewis because of the firm’s sole focus on it. I enjoyed my time there and specifically loved collective bargaining and union-related matters, wage and hour claims, and the tangible nature of the work. It wasn’t quite litigation or transactional work, but something in between.

When I made the decision to go in-house, I didn’t necessarily intend to leave the L&E world, but there was still a part of me that wondered what it would be like to work on more corporate transactional matters. I learned a lot after three years at AWS and enjoyed the fast-paced, large-scale transactions, but I started to miss L&E work. That ultimately led me to where I am now, working on both employment and commercial matters in my role at Rent the Runway (RTR).

What sort of legal issues do you handle on a day-to-day basis?

My work at RTR varies from day-to-day and spreads across almost every practice area. One day I may be drafting or negotiating an agreement with a vendor for one of our fulfillment centers, and the next may be fully focused on employee-related matters. I handle or assist with corporate transactions, marketing agreements, promotional events and rules, and all things employment, including leave and accommodation requests, immigration, reviewing and/or updating our employee policies and handbook, and assisting HR with anything else they may need.

What do you like about your current job?

My favorite thing about my job at RTR is our small team. It allows me to see more areas of the business and learn how they operate independently while also working together. I enjoy providing counsel with the entire company in mind to identify risks and advise key stakeholders regarding those risks, and work alongside them to come to a decision.

What are some practices you have in your daily life as an attorney to maintain wellness?

I find it helpful to, as much as possible, keep my work and personal life separate by focusing on one or the other at any given time. With that said, I think it’s important to take breaks every so often at work to quickly disconnect and recharge. Going for a walk outside of the office can be a great reset to keep the rest of the day productive. When home, it’s nice to have hobbies and other things you can focus on. Whether it’s watching tv or getting some exercise in, I get a lot out of turning off my work brain for a little while.

Which W&L classes and/or experiences do you think were most helpful in preparing you for this job? 

Sitting in Contracts with Professor Millon was the first time I felt that I was “thinking like a lawyer.” On top of that, reading and interpreting contracts has been foundational to everything I’ve done in my career to this point. Other than Contracts, my 3L L&E practicum was most helpful in preparing me for my current role. Not only did it continue to help me think like a lawyer, but it confirmed my passion for that area of law and introduced me to real world scenarios that have come up in my practice.

Outside of class, I took (almost) every opportunity to involve myself in student activities, including journals, flag football, and serving as a Kirgis Fellow. These taught me not only how to manage my time but also showcased the great community we had at W&L and prepared me to be part of a team in the working world.

What advice do you have for prospective law students?

Keep an open mind and don’t feel pressured to decide your future. Some students know exactly what they want to do in their legal careers when they get to law school, and that’s great for those that do. But many have no idea, or think they know, but find their interests changing once they start taking classes. It’s perfectly normal to not know, and it’s normal to change course even after you think you’ve decided. I went from thinking I’d practice family law, to not deciding to fully pursue L&E work until my 3L fall, to leaving a firm to go in-house for a transactional role, to lateralling within my team to practice data privacy and competition law, to going back to L&E at another company. You’re never stuck or locked-in as long as you keep an open mind.

Enjoy your time and get to know your classmates. Many view the three years of law school as a means to an end, and while studying and working hard are important, it’s essential to let yourself have fun and enjoy the experience as well. Your classmates can be one of your biggest support systems not only during your time in school, but for many years after you graduate, so take the time to go to social events and interact with your peers outside of the classroom. In many cases, they’ll also be the start of your professional network, and it can only benefit you to know them on a more personal level. I promise you’ll enjoy those three years much more if you do, and you may just make lifelong friends along the way.

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