Career Paths: Junior Ndlovu ’20L

By Katie Doar
May 19, 2020

Junior Ndlovu ’20L is from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. He received a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, Political Science, and Economics from  the University of Rochester. Junior spent his 1L summer as a summer associate at Vandeventer Black LLP and split his 2L summer between Vandeventer Black LLP and Allen & Allen. In his 2L year, Junior won the John W. Davis Moot Court Competition. In his 3L year, alongside his partner Noriya Shahadat ’21L, Junior won the Robert J. Grey Negotiations Competition and the Mid-Atlantic Thurgood Marshall Moot Court Competition. At graduation, Junior received the A.H. McLeod-Ross Malone Oral Advocacy Award.

Where will you be working after graduation and in what practice area?

I will be working as a trial attorney in Fredericksburg, VA for the Allen Law Firm, better known as Allen, Allen, Allen & Allen. The firm is a plaintiffs’ personal injury law firm.

Did you know coming into law school that you wanted to work in this practice area?

No. I applied to law school wanting to be a prosecutor. During my first year of law school, I got interested in transactional work. After my 1L summer, I realized that I was better suited for civil litigation.

Was there anything in your law school or summer job experience that confirmed this career choice?

Yes. In law school, I participated in numerous moot court competitions and did fairly well in most. During my summers, I found myself enjoying litigation assignments over transactional work. I enjoyed going to court and helping try cases.

What classes do you think are helpful to prepare for this job?  

I found my Community Legal Practice Clinic experience to have been one of the most helpful classes in preparing for this job. At the clinic, I had the opportunity to draft pleadings, take depositions, and argue motions. Other litigation focused classes such as trial advocacy were also helpful.

Can you describe the job search process? 

I first got a job with Allen & Allen as a summer associate through an OCI. The Office of Career Strategies sent out an e-mail about a handful of Virginia firms that were going to be interviewing. I applied to a few and was fortunate enough to be selected by Allen & Allen.

What are you most looking forward to about this job?

I look forward to fighting for ordinary people. There are so many ways people get hurt through no fault of their own. I am humbled by the opportunity to represent such people before insurance firms and courts in Virginia and beyond.