Nearly 20 years ago, a young Harvard Law School student named Raj De sat in his mentor’s office and explained why he’d decided to bypass BigLaw for the Department of Justice.
The older lawyer understood completely. “You should always go where the action is,” he counseled.
De took this advice—and then some. Leadership roles at the DOJ? Check. 9/11 Commission? He was a part of it, serving as counsel and contributing to its historic final report. U.S. Senate? Check that off, too: De was counsel to the committee charged with drafting and implementing intelligence reform legislation.