Katie Longley

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Clerking for a judge is usually something attorneys do straight out of law school. But Katie Longley did it a little differently. She worked for a year at Foley & Lardner after graduation, then clerked for a year for U.S. 7th Circuit Court Judge Diane S. Sykes, then returned to Foley, where she’s been ever since.

While unusual, Longley is glad it worked out that way, as it brought more perspective to her work as a judicial clerk than if she had gone to it straight out of school.

Now, Longley does commercial litigation for Foley, and recently concluded (successfully) a two-week trial in Outagamie County. The defendant was a foreign corporation, and the case involved many jurisdictional issues, not to mention two trips to Europe to conduct depositions.

She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Milwaukee Chapter of the Federalist Society, the St. Thomas More Lawyers Society, and the Marquette Law Alumni Board.

Q&A

Who is your favorite Supreme Court justice of all time?

William Rehnquist

What is your favorite U.S. Supreme Court opinion?

Valley Forge Christian College v. Americans United for Separation of Church and State

If you hadn’t become a lawyer, what would you have done?

Something in finance

What do you consider to be the most overrated virtue?

Tactfulness

What is your motto?

What you expect is often what you will get — so expect a lot.

What is the first concert you went to?

Arrested Development

Who are your favorite writers?

Christopher Wolfe, Emily Giffin, whoever wrote for “Will & Grace”!

What word in the English language do you wish you had invented?

Heinous

What is your favorite quote?

“The best love is the kind that awakens the soul and makes us reach for more, that plants a fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds.”