Catching up with an alumna working in American Samoa

Madeline McDaniel (LAW ’24) was deeply involved in extracurriculars during her time at Case Western Reserve University School of Law: a member of the Student Intellectual Property Law Association; the ICC Moot Court team; the managing editor for the Journal of International Law; and a legal intern in the IP Venture Clinic. 

“All of these involved a heavy amount of research, different variations of writing and critical thinking,” she said. “All of which helped prepare me for my clerkship.” 

Halfway around the world at the High Court of American Samoa, she now works as a clerk for Associate Justice Fiti A. Sunia. McDaniel often spends her morning attending a wide variety of court hearings, including pleas, sentencing, bench and jury trials, and evidentiary hearings. She spends her afternoons focused on research and writing briefs, a skill that was stressed in her time in law school. 

“My professors constantly emphasized the importance of good legal writing,” she said. “It may have been stressful at the time, but practice and knowing the bluebook does pay off.” 

Living and working in American Samoa has been a welcome adjustment for McDaniel, who noted that the small size of the island means a close-knit legal community. 

“This is a strong opposition to big law firms and the ultra competitive atmosphere for legal communities in larger cities,” she said. “[The small size] also gives the lawyers opportunities to practice in numerous fields, as opposed to being in only one speciality.”

Culture plays a huge role in the legal community in American Samoa, with three judges presiding over each hearing, one justice with a legal background and two Samoan judges charged with ensuring cultural values are upheld. 

“I often find myself asking questions about the culture in order to move forward with research,” she said. “Practicing law here also allows for trial experience and practice across various areas of law, which is helpful as I haven’t decided yet on my next career move.” 

McDaniel has signed on to continue working in American Samoa after her clerkship ends. As she prepares for this next step, she reflects on her time at Case Western Reserve, encouraging current and incoming students to fully dive in and try different experiences.  

“Moot court and the Journal of International Law were my two favorite parts of law school and neither of those, especially litigation for moot court, were things I planned to join when entering law school or was expecting to be so passionate about,” she said. “Case Western Reserve definitely gave me the ability and flexibility to be a part of different groups, rather than feeling like I had to choose one to prioritize. It also allowed for a lot of hands-on experiences that helped me develop a range of skills and get out of my comfort zone.”