A bang-up summer clerkship event

Times are tough, money is tight and summer clerkships at huge civil firms aren’t anything like they used to be. But that doesn’t mean they can’t be fun and unusual. Take the annual “Harpdrygal” summer associate event at the Dallas office of Fish & Richardson. The name comes from the mash-up of two of the firm’s lawyers who dream up low-cost, off-the-beaten-path activities to entertain the fresh-faced clerks. And if the event comes as a culture shock to the participants, all the better, says Geoff Harper, a partner in the firm, and Kip Mendrygal, an associate with the firm. Harper and Mendrygal have been dreaming up nonmainstream jaunts for the clerks for the past four years. And the event is always a secret. The clerks and even the firm’s partners don’t know where the event is until they get there. The first year involved a trip to a pro-wrestling match featuring Hulk Hogan, the second year was a trip to the region finals of the Professional Bull Riders Association and the third year was an excursion to a demolition derby (note pillows strapped to back of car). “You haven’t lived until you’ve seen a bunch of people not quite involved in that area out at a demolition derby. It was culture shock,’’ Harper says. “I’m not sure who was in more culture shock, us there or the participants seeing us come in.’’ Mendrygal agrees. “We’ve got a bunch of Ivy League kids from the East Coast coming home smelling like tires and asphalt,” Mendrygal says. Harpdrygal IV, which happened two weeks ago, was a trip to see the Assassination City Roller Derby League in Mesquite. “It’s an all-female, flat-track roller derby,” Mendrygal says. “People have a blast at these events,” he says. “They roll their eyes when they find out where we’re going. And then they say, ‘That was a highlight of the summer.’ ”
-- John Council