Kelley C. Gass

Associate, Parker, Hudson, Rainer & Dobbs LLP

40 Under 40 Category: Legal Services

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Message from Kelley C. Gass



Biography:

Kelley Gass is an associate in the Commercial Finance practice group at Parker, Hudson, Rainer & Dobbs LLP.  She primarily represents national and regional banks and other financial institutions in a broad spectrum of secured lending transactions, with a particular emphasis on asset-based lending.  Her practice also includes cross-border financings, syndicated credit facilities, healthcare financings, acquisition financings, and debtor-in-possession financings.  

Kelley earned her J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law in 2013 where she served as executive editor of the Wake Forest Law Review.  Kelley received her B.A. from Emory University in 2009.  She resides in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband, Matt, and their son, Noah. 

What effect has the COVID crisis had on your professional life? 

My experience during the COVID crisis was unique because I was at the tail end of maternity leave when businesses and firms began closing their offices and implementing work-from-home policies.  I returned to work in April from my home office—which, incidentally, doubles as my son’s playroom—and without childcare because our daycare had temporarily closed before my son had the opportunity to attend his first day.  As a result, I navigated my first few months of being a new working parent with virtually no separation between my professional life and my personal life.  I scheduled calls around naps and feedings, muted conference lines during teething meltdowns, and drafted documents in piecemeal fashion throughout the day as my husband and I tackled our workdays in shifts around our infant’s schedule.    

I think many working parents can relate to the struggle of operating a full-time daycare out of their home offices during the pandemic.  For me, the result was a humbling and humanizing experience that allowed me to bond on a more personal level with clients and colleagues facing similar challenges.  Maintaining those relationships and finding those commonalities gave me a renewed sense of purpose behind my work.  It reminded me that, at the end of the day, we are all working toward the same goal: to do our very best under the circumstances while preserving as much of our sanity as possible! 

What advice do you normally give to the junior talent you mentor?

I like to encourage junior talent to say “yes” to as many opportunities as possible (within reason!) early on in their career.  As a finance attorney, there is so much to learn that law school does not even begin to cover.  When I first began working at my firm, I recall adopting a “sponge-like” approach to learning by attempting to soak up information from as many new and diverse assignments as senior attorneys were willing to send my way.  I can say from experience that being open-minded and willing to tackle everything from the most menial grunt work to the most esoteric project can go a long way when familiarizing yourself with the industry, the documentation, and the people involved in the practice.  In addition to the substantive knowledge you pick up along the way, developing a level of adaptability and a willingness to take on new challenges can help you immeasurably in your career.  

I also like to remind those I mentor to not be afraid to ask questions or admit when they do not know the answer to a problem.  I think attorneys are used to projecting an image of unwavering confidence and that, unfortunately, junior attorneys can often equate a lack of knowledge about a particular topic with weakness or ignorance.  On the contrary, I believe it shows much more wisdom and maturity when you can admit you do not know something but then devote the time to researching, asking questions, and doing the necessary work to find the solution.  You can gain much more credibility in the long run with this approach than by making something up or blindly championing the wrong answer.