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Brittany Cheney鈥檚 law career began on the Pacific Union College basketball court. 鈥淭o do well in law, you have to be competitive,鈥� says the 鈥�07 alumna. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the same thing with basketball."

Brittany graduated at the top of her UC Davis School of Law Class of 2012, and was awarded the Law School Medal for academic achievement. After a successful internship with Downey Brand, the largest law firm in Sacramento, Calif., she was hired as an associate attorney in Downey鈥檚 family law practice.

While at PUC, Brittany was a member of PUC鈥檚 Lady Pioneers. The team鈥檚 games and practices taught her athletic skills鈥�and persistence. Even when the team didn鈥檛 win a game, says Brittany, 鈥渨e didn鈥檛 quit.鈥� As a summa cum laude graduate of PUC, Brittany was also dedicated to her studies as an international communication major with an emphasis in Spanish and a business minor. Brittany also managed a complex fundraising campaign in the college鈥檚 Alumni and Advancement Office, raising $25,000鈥攁bove the drive鈥檚 original goal.

After graduating, Brittany worked for two years in fundraising, advertising and other positions before deciding to attend University of California, Davis. The academic break gave her work experience that helped prevent burnout during law school. 鈥淭wo years was long enough to want to go back to school. I was ready to give it three more years,鈥� says Brittany.

Her basketball skills travelled with her to UC Davis, where playing the sport helped her remain balanced. The lessons she learned on the court still applied to her life as a law student. 鈥淟aw school was really hard, and I didn鈥檛 always feel like I was doing well鈥�but I鈥檇 been through tough things before, and felt I like wanted to keep going,鈥� remembers Brittany.

During her first summer in law school she worked in the legal research department of Sacramento Superior Court. And before her third year, Brittany was also going to court. With the Family Protection and Legal Assistance Clinic, which gives legal aid to low-income domestic violence victims, Brittany represented actual clients in family law proceedings. She was one of only a few law students who spoke Spanish, thanks to time in Spain with Adventist Colleges Abroad, and put her bilingual skills to use. 鈥淭he interesting miscommunications gave [clients and I] something to laugh about,鈥� Brittany remembers.

Taking Sabbath off gave Brittany the rest she needed to succeed during the other six days of the week. Dedicated to her three-year law student career, she was surprised to find that she would graduate at the top of her class. In her commencement address to an audience of over 1,400, Brittany encouraged her peers not to 鈥渇orget where you came from, or who helped you get to where you are in life, and don't forget to acknowledge their contributions." She added, "It will keep you humble and grateful for your life." 

Brittany credits her PUC English 101 classes from Dr. Marilyn Glaim for Brittany鈥檚 great start in college. Learning excellent writing skills prepared her to be a lawyer, before she began to seriously consider law as a career. 鈥淭o be competitive in law, you have to be good writer. You have to be succinct, and get your point across quickly, or you lose your reader,鈥� she points out.

Upper-division classes from journalism professor Lynne Thew were also 鈥渋ncredibly important,鈥� adds Brittany. She practiced paying attention to details, because others would, too. 鈥淏e accurate in your grammar and spelling, the things people gloss over and don鈥檛 pay attention to. Work hard not to have mistakes in writing, so that you can be taken seriously,鈥� says Brittany.

Now Brittany tells students interested in law, 鈥淵ou鈥檙e not just going to earn a degree; you鈥檙e going to enter a profession.鈥� A law degree 鈥済ives you a boost into all sorts of jobs,鈥� and is also a significant responsibility and investment of time and finances. Brittany suggests that students 鈥済et as much as experience as possible with research and writing; they鈥檙e the two most important things鈥� for a law degree.

In a high rise-building overlooking Sacramento鈥檚 Capitol, Brittany is writing at a new professional level. She鈥檚 bringing her PUC Pioneer persistence to a different court 鈥� but putting the same Covered Wagon spirit to work as Downey Brand's newest associate attorney.