Malaka Watson always dreamt of becoming a savvy attorney. Working at BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee the summer before her senior year in college had only crystallized her intent. But, like most college students, the cost of tuition was a major concern.
“You’re encouraged not to work during your first year of law school,” Watson says. So she applied for scholarships. She secured one to the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, but knew additional financial support would allow her to focus solely on her studies. So, she applied for a Chattanooga Bar Foundation scholarship, a process that included writing an essay and being interviewed by Chattanooga Bar Association Executive Director Lynda Minks Hood and a panel of member attorneys.
To her surprise and pleasure, the Fellows of the Bar awarded her the scholarship.
“It was a tremendous help,” she says, sitting in a conference room at BlueCross, where she now works as a legal analyst. “I didn’t have to worry about money as much as I otherwise would have. Law school is expensive, so I was glad to have it.”
Watson started law school in 2007, spending her summers working at the BlueCross. As she researched health care related issues, among other tasks, her career plan changed from litigation to transactional work. “I like to learn, so I enjoyed the work I was doing. It helped me to realize I could take a transactional path, and didn’t necessarily have to litigate.”
In 2010, BlueCross hired Watson out of law school. Although an attorney recently sworn in before the Tennessee State Supreme Court, her role at BlueCross is not as a lawyer, but as a legal analyst. The job is a good fit with her thirst for knowledge.
“I do a lot of research for Human Resources regarding employment laws, including guidance and regulations issued by administrative agencies. A recent example of this type of research would be the EEOC’s guidance on the consideration of arrests and conviction records in employment decisions. I’ll find out what their perspective is, and then draft a memo to the attorney in that department. We’ll then work together to communicate the guidance and recommendations to the business unit.”
Watson also recently researched new FCC regulations regarding mobile and online marketing. “Businesses want to make sure they send text messages to the right people the right way,” she says.
On any day, Watson might be working with any of the attorneys who support the different departments at BlueCross, doing research, reviewing or drafting contracts, and performing other sundry tasks. She enjoyed the work while in law school, and she still enjoys it today.
“Staying on top of new laws and regulations is a lot of work, but I like it,” she says.
Watson grew up in Youngstown, Ohio, and then moved with her family to Memphis, Tenn., where she graduated from high school. She then earned an undergraduate degree in criminal justice from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, from which she’d received a scholarship.
“I liked studying criminal justice,” she says, “and I knew I could get into law school with any major.”
Watson’s reason for pursuing a career in law is simple: she wants to help people.
“While growing up, I saw a lot of injustice, and a lot of people caught up in the system,” she says. “I didn’t want my life to take that direction, and I wanted to help others.”
Watson believes she is having a positive impact on the lives of other people through her work in employment law at BlueCross. “I like helping make sure our policies and procedures are in line with the law,” she says. “It not only mitigates risk for the company but also makes sure we’re making the right decisions for our employees.”
Watson says her decision to move back to Chattanooga after graduating from law school was the right one for her. She’s currently a member of the 2014 class of Leadership Chattanooga, and through that is enjoying learning more about the city in which she’s living. “During one of our classes, we went to a couple of different schools in Hamilton County to witness the student’s daily curriculum and to assess their needs,” she says. “Being there and talking with the teachers, the principals, and the students was eye-opening.”
Through Leadership Chattanooga, Watson is mentoring students about choosing and preparing oneself for a career. An upcoming session, for example, will discuss professionalism and appropriate attire. She’s also taught legal research and legal writing classes at Chattanooga College. These things have helped her to begin to think of Chattanooga, where she didn’t grow up, and where no one from her family resides, as home.
When Watson isn’t working, she enjoys traveling, dabbling in fashion, and working out.
She also spends time considering the future. For example, she’s eager to begin practicing law.
“I’m grateful for the opportunities I’ve had here,” she says, “and I’m looking forward to what lies ahead.”