Page 84 of For the Boys
“Such as?” Lippett asked, glancing down at his sheet again, which must be the class roster. “Mr. Bennett! What do you say?”
Reece cleared his throat. “A morals clause would be a good place to start,” he said.
“Ahh, a morals clause,” Lippett said. “A morals clause is a tricky thing. Here’s a little history factoid for you: morals clauses got their start in the roaring twenties with libertine actors. Now they are used predominantly by the sports and entertainment industries. Any idea why that would be?” Lippett called on another student at random.
“People representing sports franchises and entertainment brands are given contracts with moral clause stipulations in them to prevent them from embarrassing that particular franchise or brand,” the student said.
“Exactly!” Lippett said. “And there’s a number of ways to word such clauses in contracts, but what would you say the most common one is?” Another student was named, and a female voice rang out from across the room.
“One stipulating that anything outside public morals or decency or acceptable social norms is grounds for termination?” The girl phrased it like a question, but Berkley knew she was correct. Lippett nodded in agreement.
“Dead on,” he said, giving the student a thumbs up. “So here’s what we’re going to do. I’m going to email you each a copy of this contract, with names redacted, of course. I ask that you break into groups and pick apart the construction of the contract. See if you can figure out what the preparer of the document did right and what they did wrong. Make sure you cite precedents, please! Any questions?” He paused for a moment, eyes sweeping the room, but no one raised a hand. “Good. Now let’s move on to the less fun side of things, types of contracts and specifics within them!”
The rest of the class groaned and set about opening their laptops in preparation for note-taking, but Berkley happily set to work.
Since Berkley’s dream was to open her own agency, using her skills as a lawyer to represent athletes such as women and rookies who might not otherwise be getting a fair shake in contract negotiations because of sex or age, this class was right in her wheelhouse. It was necessary for becoming the type of lawyer she wanted to be, and she was going to make sure to soak up every single thing Professor Lippett had to offer over the next four months.
When class was over, Professor Lippett flagged Berkley down as she made her way from the room.
“So, Miss Daniels,” he said, “you were great today. I appreciate someone who comes prepared for anything I throw at them.”
“Thank you, Professor,” she said. “Contracts are a passion of mine.”
“That’s what I hear,” he told her. He reached into his briefcase and fished out a card, passing it to her. “That’s my card, obviously,” he said with a chuckle. “We deal with a lot of contract-related cases at the firm, and my partners and I are always on the lookout for talented young associates that we believe could be major assets to what we’re trying to accomplish.”
“And you think that’s me?” Berkley asked, incredulous. In all seriousness, she worked her ass off, and her high GPA hadn’t been earned by her pretty face and shining personality. She’d expected the job offers to start rolling in this semester; she just hadn’t expected this one.
“Absolutely,” Lippett said, nodding his head. “I’ve heard about you from my colleagues here for years, and I know you’ll have your pick of firms across the country after college. Just…consider sticking around. That’s all I’m asking.”
“I will, Professor Lippett,” she said sincerely. “Thank you for this.”
Berkley hurried from the room and found Reece and Harper waiting for her.
“What did he want?” Reece asked as they fell into step with Berkley on their way out of the building.
“I think he just offered me a job,” Berkley replied, still dazed.
Harper huffed out a disgusted sigh, and Reece laughed. “Of course he did,” he said. “You’re you, after all.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Berkley asked him.
“Just that you’re Berkley Daniels,” he replied with a shrug, then turned on his heel and started toward the law library.
She turned to Harper. “I still don’t know what that means.”
“It means, my friend,” Harper said, looping her arm through Berkley’s to follow Reece, “that you’re destined for greatness.”
After an endless day of attending classes and studying, Berkley met Brent at a restaurant near campus for a quick dinner.
He gave her a quick peck on the lips when she walked up to meet him and turned to open the door. Warm air wafted out, wrapping Berkley in its embrace. She shivered and stepped inside.
Once they were seated, Brent studied her in an intense way that made Berkley squirm in her seat. “How was your first day back?”
“Exhausting,” she said honestly. “It’s time to get serious about studying for the Bar if I ever want to pass it on the first try. All of my free time is going to be dedicated to that, so you might regret asking me to be your girlfriend before too long.”
Brent gasped theatrically. “Never!”
Berkley laughed and took a long sip from her beer. “You might be singing a different tune in a month when you haven’t seen or heard from me because my stack of textbooks and study guides collapsed on top of me.”
