Big Law to Career Builder: Bridging the Gap with Imani Maatuka’s Ultimate Career Playbook - S10E17

0:00My greatest superpower is outsourcing. You are not only making yourself more visible, but you're building credibility when you're anticipating problems and making them your own. And then you're also going the extra step of getting started before someone even has to tell you to do so. That initiative is going to take you so far and it's going to make people trust you and make people want to mentor you. And so I think it starts, Rob, with just reaffirming that the commitment is there. On today's Legally Speaking podcast, I'm delighted to be joined by Imani Martuka. Imani is the managing partner of the Dallas office at Martuka Al-Heati M.K.E.Z., LLC.

0:39She is also the co-founder of the Bridging the Gap Scholarship, supporting minority students pursuing a career in the law. Recognized among the top 40 under 40 attorneys, Imani has built a demanding legal career while leading with purpose-driven initiatives. So a very big warm welcome to the show, Imani. Thank you so much for having me, Rob. Oh, it's an absolute pleasure to have you on the show. And before we get into your background and all the great stuff you're doing in and around the legal community, we have a couple of quick fire icebreaker questions for you. Firstly, what is your favorite beverage and what is your preferred choice of footwear on a typical workday?

1:16Favorite beverage would probably have to be, I'm so like boring, a really good vanilla latte. Sounds tasty. And footwear on a workday? You know, my favorite is Kohan. Like that is like the least bougie thing I wear, but I am more prioritized with my feet being comfortable and not killing me when I'm wearing heels, whether I'm going to the courtroom or just the office. Yeah, I'm with you. Comfort always wins the race. And with that, we can move swiftly on to talk all about you. So to begin with, would you start by telling our listeners a bit about your background and career journey? So my name is Imani Malatuka.

1:54I come from a family of attorneys. So the question wasn't ever, are you going to law school? It was, when are you going to law school? I went to North Carolina A &T, Aggie Pride for undergrad. Then I went to Washington University in St. Louis for law school. And after that, I started my career at an international law firm, Sidley Austin, and I started in their Dallas office. So I did both of my summers there and then five years in their commercial litigation group. And I left as a managing associate. So it feels in totality like I was there at Sidley for probably seven years. You know, in so many ways, that firm raised me, so to speak.

2:36and then very recently I transitioned to open the Dallas office of Malatuka Alhidi Emkis which is a firm that is full service but the Dallas office will serve as a litigation boutique and it is the opportunity of a lifetime to litigate alongside my mother Shayla Malatuka so I'm really excited for this next step. Very very exciting and you touched on there that you came from a family of attorneys. Was there a point you realized you really wanted to pursue a career in the law? You know, that's hard because I feel like it's a culmination of so many points, you know. Like, for example, I remember growing up and going with my mom to the courtroom, you know, and hearing her oral argument or being able to sit in the back while there was a trial going on and just like being kind of enamored by what she was doing that whole practice.

3:34But then similarly, my aunt, she took a different route. So she was a, um, she went to Michigan law for law school and then she started her career in big law and now she's been elevated to the general counsel role. But I also remember her with like, just thinking like, oh my God, she is so bad-ass. Oh my God. Like, um, I remember when she like built her, her first home from scratch and like that was like the first smart home I had been in and it was like oh my god I want to be just like Auntie Dawn when I when I when I grew up but I felt like there have just been so many moments in life it's really hard to kind of like um hone in on one to be like oh this was the big moment where Imani Montica said yes for sure I want to go to law school and I want to do it I feel like there were just so many moments that just affirmed me to know I'm on the right path and this is exactly what I should be doing.

4:27Yeah, absolutely. And you're flying right now. And as you sort of mentioned, you are now managing partner. And what does your role involve and tell us about some of the responsibilities? Yeah, so really, I am solely responsible for building this Dallas office from the ground up. You know, so a lot of that looks like client development, it looks like recruiting talent. It looks like managing cases from start to finish a lot of what I had a lot of experience doing at my previous firm. But it is really rolling up those sleeves and saying, okay, we are at ground zero right now. We need to make this a formidable law firm in the Dallas market and kind of like take our spot on the throne.

5:14So that is my job, obviously with the help of my partners who are in our Illinois office. But I think a lot of that is going to fall on my shoulders. Yeah, and it's exciting, right? And I'm sure you're going to rise to the challenge because you've been phenomenally successful to date. And again, just to give our listeners some education, you are obviously at Sydney Austin, one of the world's best firms working on some of the best quality cases, perhaps just talk us through the differences of what a day would have looked like for you then versus a day now to again, probably inspire certain people who might be thinking about doing the same thing or actually thinking actually I'm more probably suited to that environment simply you get some of the quintessential you know big law um and in some of the things that people like the stereotypes that come with big law is like you're working on very complex high stakes matters but you're also working um a lot to say the least and so you know one of the associates greatest values or value items that they can provide to the firm is their time, their availability, you know, like you need that person.

6:21Sometimes things come up where you're in an international dispute and the other, um, the client is in a totally different time zone. And so unfortunately you have a call that starts at three in the morning, four in the morning, whatever it might be. And similarly, sometimes you have like those real emergencies where you have to get something out the door and the client is coming to us because we have a team that's capable and that can take on those problems and, you know, give them the solution that they want. And so I think one of the greatest differences that I'll see, um, is just the timing.

6:57You know, I was, it was a very hard worker at Sibley. I was, I loved it, you know, and I do not say that lightly. I love the team of attorneys I work for. I love the mentorship I got. I got, I love the opportunities from an experiential standpoint. that I receive. And so I kind of jumped all in. I was, I was very busy, you know, often working, you know, 12 to 16 hour days, because like, there was just so much to get done in a certain day. Honestly, I think my work days will look slightly different now, where maybe they will be 12 to 16 nowadays, but they won't be solely, you know, billable work where you're working on discrete client matter issues, but rather a lot of it's going to be administrative, business development, and more of the business of law, rather than the focus on so much of the actual practice.

7:54But I think the timing will stay the same, but I think the type of work that I'm doing will be the biggest distinction. Absolutely, because, you know, you specialize in commercial litigation and disputes and you know you have experience you know advising and investigations by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, U.S. Department of Justice, obviously State Attorney General as I could go on. So you know you're touching on it there again just to give listeners a bit more of a flavor of your background and journey. Tell us about the type of work you've done, projects you've completed, just to give us a bit more of a flavor.

8:25Yeah so at Sidley our commercial litigations department you can think of as a large umbrella and by that I mean it really encapsulates like all things dispute resolution. So during my time at Sibley, I handled, you know, very complex arbitrations, you know, which is an alternative dispute resolution, rather than litigating a matter, you can go through arbitration. Did that I had a very interesting trade secret matter that we actually won on all counts at trial is a huge one for the team. I also, as you mentioned, handled internal investigations involving the SEC, I had some with biopharmaceutical companies.

9:05I also handled investigations brought by attorneys generals that then transitioned to full-blown litigation. I've also handled multi-district litigation, particularly in the product liability world. And so multi-district litigation, you can think of, you know, class action, there is one pie being split, you know, let's say a thousand ways. multi-district litigation, there are a thousand individual pies that have been consolidated for purposes of pretrial discovery. So it's a very sprawling, very fast-paced type of litigation. You can have thousands of cases at issue and you're kind of like navigating all of that, especially from the defense side.

9:52And so, yeah, I've just really kind of done everything. And I I love that diversification within my practice. You know, I've never had to feel like I'm, you know, specializing or in anything or that, you know, I'm kind of limiting my options to one certain type of practice of law. I've really been able to do things across the gambit. And I think it's just made me a better attorney to be able to see all of these different types of disputes and also different phases of litigation. Yeah, and it's a really impressive broad experience that you have. As you mentioned, you know, securities fraud, alleged consumer fraud, market manipulation, mass tort litigation, etc, etc.

10:34Is there one particular case that's most memorable to you? And if so, why? Maybe just my most recent because it was one of the cases that came in very early and it lasted a multitude of years, which is, you know, the here relaxer multi-district litigation that's currently active in the Northern District of Illinois. and I think it's most memorable because that was a case where I handled my first oral argument in federal court and in that case before Judge Roland in the Northern District of Illinois in that case I was like regularly arguing for at least a year almost like every single month and I was traveling to Chicago for like one week out of every month I joked with people that I felt like I was a part-time Chicago associate rather than a Dallas associate because I, at one point, I had like two cases pending, one in state court in Illinois and then one in federal court in Illinois.

11:37And I was like, I should just move here. You know, I'm from Champaign, Illinois. This is home. My brother is actually practicing. He's an intellectual property attorney at McAndrews. And so I would be able to come. It was cheap for the client because I could come in, stay with my brother I get to see him um and hang out and so I would say that's my most memorable we had a really great team I had some really great um mentors and people just that poured into me we worked amazing together and it was just really fun yeah and I can just hear the passion in your voice as well and you obviously speak very fondly of your time from from from Sydney because when you were there obviously as a managing associate you know in the commercial litigation side of things you were selected as a member of the national black lawyers top 40 under 40 in 2024 So how would you describe your overall experience working at the firm?

12:24I mean, it was unparalleled. We talked earlier and I think big law gets a really bad rep and understandably so. I'm not going to be foolish and act like I haven't heard some of the horror stories and heard about just in experience, some of the things that really plague that industry and what makes it difficult to navigate. Now, I think one of the biggest critiques, though, with big law or corporate law generally is that the tradeoff is you're going to get these inflated salaries. Right. And in exchange, you're not going to get that substantive experience. You know, you're going to be limited to document review.

13:07You're you're not you're going to leave after however many years you you survive. And I'm putting air quotes up for those who can't see. but whenever you leave you know you're not going to know how to do anything you're going to be an overpaid attorney with no substantive experience whatsoever and no one's going to be able to use you you know that's the biggest critique that I've heard and that just was not my experience at all I mean we can go in and talk about how you know the type of market that you come into how that impacts your big law experience if you will but I know starting in the Dallas office starting in an office that was very intimate.

13:49You know, I think when when I started, we had probably 40 to 60 attorneys in our group. And now we've almost doubled that by the time I was leaving. But starting in a smaller office of a huge firm, you know, and starting with partners in that office who were rainmakers, to say the least, and like global heads within our practice groups and really were kind of like, like I started when that was kind of like on her rise to chair of the firm. And just like, it was almost like a perfect storm where I had the opportunity being in a smaller office, working with partners who were far beyond their peers and just bringing in really interesting, complex or the sexiest matters into the firm and having an opportunity with partners who wanted to staff matters, you know, Dallas first.

14:46And just like almost having so many opportunities presented to me where we're staffing on multiple teams and like the junior associates have to do the work. They have to do the first draft of everything. They have to kind of like wrap their arms around every single aspect of the case. They have to be the MVP of the facts, they have to be the person who on a drop of a dime can like explain something to the client and just kind of strategize and think about what are our next steps here. And so I think in that way, my experience at Sidley's Dallas office was just completely unmatched, you know, and I shout it from the rooftops for anyone who can hear because I think we have to, especially from a big law standpoint, we have to share more of those positive stories.

15:37You know, I think we, we give so much air, and again, rightfully so, but we give so much air to some of those negative stories. And we almost scare students and pre-law students about the practice of law and what this industry can really be and how it can shape and mold their career, especially at, you know, the most important stages, the very beginning. And so, yeah, I mean, I had the most amazing experience. I mean, like I was saying, you know, I defended my first deposition at Sibley. I was arguing multiple times at federal court at Sibley. I was presenting to the client on weekly and monthly basings at the firm.

16:19I was taking leadership positions, both in committees at the firm, but also just on my cases and with younger associates. I mean, that firm gave me everything I could have wanted and more. I created very intimate relationships with very senior partners who even today I know I can call for anything and they will have my back. And I think that is exactly what you would want when you're starting your career at a bigger law firm. And that is exactly what I got. Yeah, absolutely. And again, I can hear the passion oozing in your voice there from your your time, your experience, your gratitude for the upskilling, the opportunities that came your way that have obviously helped you with your path and your journey to where you are today.

17:05And you were touching on it there. I wanted to ask a thing about balance because you did hold a blend of sort of legal practice with leadership, mentorship, you know, community engagement. You're very much out there. How did you balance those responsibilities whilst obviously establishing yourself as an associate and ensuring you got the work done? I think my greatest superpower is outsourcing. Like, I am the queen of outsourcing. I think I am the queen of getting really good people in terms of a team so that I can pour into the things that I'm most passionate about. So, for example, you mentioned some of my community involvement and engagement.

17:43One of the things I'm most proud of is my work with Bridging the Gap Scholarship. It's a scholarship I co-founded in 2019 when I was a 1L at Wash U Law. and with that yes it's a ton of work yes it is very difficult to do especially while I was at a firm like Sibley but I had curated a team not only from the board but also from like some of our partners that we use where I was able to still be great in that aspect of my life but I could lean on those who I've entrusted to get the job done even in that capacity you know we have I have board members that I work with, but I also have partners such as like Spivey Consulting, Barbary Law Preview, Blueprint, who take on such a onerous part of the development of our scholars such that I can, you know, dedicate and focus a lot more of my time to the practice of law or self-care, whatever that might be.

18:46And I think that's been kind of my like secret, if you will, throughout everything. You know, even in my personal life, I have people that I've outsourced things and entrusted things to, to make it a bit more easier on me to be able to do all the things that I'm passionate about, what I'm passionate about the practice of law, I'm passionate about being a mentor and bringing up the next generation of attorneys. Whatever it might be, I've kind of like outsourced the things that I don't really want to do. Or maybe the things I'm not that great at. so that I have time and energy to expend on the things that I can really knock out of the park.

19:26It's playing to your strengths and playing smart. And I always say elevate and delegate, right? Your outsourcing models obviously work super well for you because you put people in places and spaces that probably can do things better than you, faster than you, to a higher level than you, and happier than you that frees up time for you to then go and execute on things that you probably do want to be doing. And as a result of that, you can find balance and execution off the back of it. I think it's smart. So yeah, I like that style. Big law environment can be where credibility is earned quickly, particularly if you're, you know, in those environments doing well.

19:58What strategies helped you build trust with partners, clients and colleagues so well? Preparation. You know, there's someone who says that luck is just preparation that meets opportunity. And I think that is kind of the MO of my big law experience. very early on in my career I would have instances where a partner you know would kind of put me on the spot and be like oh Imani you did this research tell the client about it oh Imani you know about that tell the client about it you know or like where I'm kind of expecting you know what you hear from people is when you're on a call the most junior person on the call is just there to take notes right so I'm vigorously always doing that that is that's my MO that's what I'm honed in on.

20:43And so I definitely did not expect as a first year to be the person, you know, presenting and explaining some of these very complex and sticky legal issues to a client. But I had partners and mentors and like, for example, one of the people that comes to my mind is Yvette. I worked very closely with her during my entire time at the firm and almost exclusively worked on all of her matters. And so I think about times that she would give me an opportunity to present or kind of put me on the spot and be like, hey, you've got this, like, you can handle this. And in those moments, not only am I building credibility, but I'm also building confidence with myself, so that the next time it happens, it's a breeze, you know, because I've been there before, I've done it before, I can tweak little things that I noticed while I was presenting the last time to make the next presentation even better.

21:38But I also think like the ability to rise to those occasions, then builds that rapport with the partners and not only the partners, but also the client, so that they want me to do the next big thing, whatever that might be. And so I think, you know, going back to my first point, the only reason I'm able to do that and rise to the occasion is because I'm prepared, you know, because now, now that it happened once, now that I was put on the spot and I realized, oh, I need to take ownership of this. I might be the person who has to explain whatever very meaty thing, you know. Now I have the opportunity to dot all my I's and cross my T's, you know.

22:19I'm going to go back. I'm going to make myself, I started every single meeting I would have, even if I knew, you know, like the partners are probably going to handle all this, I would draft my own talking points, you know. I would have something on the screen, or if it's in person, I'd have my little sheet so that if, if for whatever reason, someone forgot something, someone, um, maybe they have to step out or something happens. Imani Malatuka can rise to the occasion. I'm prepared. I know exactly what's at issue. You know, I remember those, that case law, that research that I did, you know? And so to other people, it looks like, oh my gosh, she just knows like how she's so prepared.

23:00She's just, she always knows everything. And then what in reality, it's me making cheat codes almost for myself and just really preparing before those calls before those moments so that I'm getting the next one, you know, because I never wanted to set myself up for failure or really set myself up where a door that is wide open for me is now all of a sudden closed because I didn't properly prepare. So I would say that is my biggest secret, if you will, to gaining credibility and rapport with not only the partners, but the clients. Today's Legally Speaking podcast episode is proudly sponsored by Clio.

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24:21Visit clio.com forward slash UK to learn more and discover why so many UK solicitors choose Clio. Now back to the show. It's hard work. You've put in the hard work, you know, you've prepared, you've been proactive, you've gone above and beyond what other people might do. And I think that's really, really important. And you know, fair play to you for doing that. And as an extension of that question, I was going to ask because you're touching on there, but anything else you would add to it in terms of, you know, a lot of junior associates struggle with visibility don't they what practical steps did you take to ensure your work and potential was recognized on top of obviously the preparation that you put in any other tips you would give yeah so I think junior associates are uniquely positioned and they're uniquely positions and I'm going to caveat this with you know I was at a firm where we had very lean and mean teams um and so like I typically didn't work with like a thousand associates on case, you know, I'm embellishing a bit, but you get what I'm saying.

25:19And so like, we were staffed in a way where it's like someone junior, someone like a more senior associate, and then typically a partner or two. And that was like really the case team. So caveat there. But junior associates are uniquely positioned, where you're like, the MVP, you kind of know where all the balls are in the air, you know, like, you're the person who's closest to the documents, you're the person who's closest to the docket, you know, what filing deadlines are coming up, you just know kind of like how generally the case is progressing. And so for those associates who are really focused on visibility and opportunities, I think you have to lean into that superpower.

26:04And how do you do that? Well, you do that by anticipating what's next and being all over it, right? So, for example, everyone knows there is a complaint, right? After a complaint, you have to respond. Typically, you're going to file a motion to dismiss. And, you know, there are things you have to do in order to get that ready, right? There's research. You need to analyze the complaint, figure out where the weak points are. You need to start drafting an outline of what are our arguments, what basis or bases are we going to move on, right? So that is not a secret. Every single case, especially from a litigation standpoint, is probably going to have that absent some extraordinary circumstances.

26:50So knowing that and being the person, you know, kind of like pre-suit and or very early stages of litigation, you're the junior associate. it. So you're probably the person who sat in on a lot of the interviews that you're conducting with a client to figure out like, what all happened here? What's what, right? And so you have a very healthy understanding of the facts and the issues that play in this dispute. And so being the junior, you should anticipate, hey, those are the steps, what I just outlined, right? Outline of the arguments, research, those steps are going to have to get delegated. Someone anticipate that someone's going to have to tell you to do this stuff.

27:30And so you're going to already start doing it or tell the partner, Hey, I'm already started on the outline. Hey, I started researching into these issues. Hey, what do you think about this outline of the argument that I put together? They are going to look at you like you're a rock star, you know, because they're going to be like, Oh my God, I didn't even have to tell her to do all these things. Um, and they're like, Oh my gosh, How are you still on top of it? So I think as a junior associate, there are so many opportunities for you to anticipate what's next and send a note to whoever the power is that might be, you know, maybe it's a senior associate who's overseeing you, or maybe you're working directly with a partner.

28:09Regardless, you are not only making yourself more visible, but you're building credibility with them when you're anticipating their problems and making them your own. and then you're also going the extra step of getting started before someone even has to tell you to do so you know that initiative is going to take you so far and it's going to make people trust you and make people want to mentor you you know and and I feel like those are the opportunities I think of where you know I was showing that initiative and then the partner and or senior associate then saw that as an opportunity like okay I love what you did here with the argument let's think about it this way you know and now it's like I'm looking into your brain and you're like dumping that knowledge on me and then it's like I almost manufacture you know a mentorship moment or opportunity for myself just by being a good associate or being you know um taking that initiative and that's it isn't it it's it's being proactive it's being not a resource but a value add you know you're not just sort of working for them you're kind of moving things forward you're always looking forward you're you're being that value add and as a result of that you're going to get more opportunities come your way and as you say that reverse mentoring piece actually works quite well because it's a lot easier to review something than to start something so even if you don't get it 100 % right you're showing you're proactive you're putting yourself above others you're getting yourself noticed and you're going to be the person that probably gets more opportunities i love that great advice thank you okay in 2019 you co-founded the bridging the gap scholarship Can you tell us about the scholarship, please?

29:44And who's it aimed at? Yeah. So the goal of Bridging the Gap scholarship is to increase minority representation in big law. You know, that's no secret to anyone. And I think in part it's because of the big law recruiting kind of like style. Um, so big law firms, I'd say predominantly recruit from the most prestigious universities in America. Um, what does that mean? Well, that means that you're already taking like a minority pool, right? Most lawyers do not go to T14s or top 20 law schools. I'm sorry if that was a shocker to anyone. Um, but so now you're taking a minority of a minority, right?

30:33And then so looking and recruiting diverse talent is extraordinarily difficult. And I think you see that in the racial makeup of, you know, our top law firms. And so we started bridging a gap with the scholarship to fix that issue because we believe that it begins way before you get to law school, right? First, there is this illusion of choice that I think that exists with pre-law students, especially with pre-law students from underrepresented backgrounds. Most people's first visual of an attorney comes from the media. So we're thinking in America, SVU, Law and Order, the TV shows that are showing and depicting lawyers, but typically in a more public interest or governmental type role, right?