Reuters Profiles Jaelyn Judelson Following Her Promotion to Partner

Akin Gump international trade partner Jaelyn Judelson has been featured in the Reuters story “New Akin Gump partner fosters diversity in the firm and in her practice.”

Judelson, who was promoted to partner at the beginning of the year (click here to learn more), discusses how she first became interested in the field of international trade, attributing it to her experience studying in South Africa while in college. “I was really fascinated by global business and the mechanisms that allowed [business] to really flourish,” she said.

The article reports that Judelson joined Akin Gump in 2012 looking to broaden and diversify her set of clients. She then spent two years in the firm’s London office, which she said helped her refocus her practice as she built relationships with more diverse clients and partners before returning to Washington and advising defense contractors.

Judelson has since relocated to Los Angeles, where she advises tech companies. The article reports that the move west has coincided with her emergence as a leader for diversity and inclusion at the firm, where she serves as co-chair of its Black Firmwide Resource Group.

Judelson said her path to partnership was paved by the perspectives she has gained from working in three different Akin Gump offices to now leading firmwide diversity and inclusion efforts. “I’ve learned to lean in to change and to embrace the unexpected,” she said.