English Alum in the Spotlight: Paul Tuttle
...the most important skill that I developed at SSU was the ability to empathize with anyone: a new judge who is anxious that they aren't qualified; an experienced lawyer who thinks he already has the answer; or a woman with limited English proficiency and no lawyer who is facing an eviction. Nothing compares with studying literature when it comes to learning [how] to see a situation through someone else's eyes, especially when that study is with the wonderful English faculty at SSU."
by Joseph Bova '23
Paul Tuttle, class of 2001, is an Assistant Clerk at Massachusetts Appeals Court. After graduating from SSU, he went on to earn his Juris Doctor (JD) at the Boston University School of Law in 2004.
What does your job involve? My job consists of using my experience and training as a lawyer to assist the public, other lawyers, and the judges of the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the state's intermediary appellate court.
How have you applied your experiences at SSU to your career? The most obvious way that I have used what I learned at SSU is through daily written communication--both reading it and writing it. However, the most important skill that I developed at SSU was the ability to empathize with anyone: a new judge who is anxious that they aren't qualified, an experienced lawyer who thinks he already has the answer, or a woman with limited English proficiency and no lawyer who is facing an eviction. Nothing compares with studying literature when it comes to learning to see a situation through someone else's eyes, especially when that study is with the wonderful English faculty at SSU.
What do you find most enjoyable about your job? The most enjoyable part of my job is developing creative solutions to the problems faced by court users.
What personal qualities or abilities are important to being successful in your career? The most important abilities are to quickly research the law, process that information, and communicate the result to other people with varying degrees of fluency in the law. The most important personal qualities are patience and the ability to empathize.
How do you adapt and stay current on developments in your field? I attend some continuing legal education courses and read every new state appellate decision that is released. In addition, I have presented at numbers of seminars and conferences. When preparing to present, I invariably learn new substantive information and skills.
What were your favorite classes at SSU? I'm too far removed to remember a lot of the titles of the classes and there were so many, but one that sticks out was Contemporary American Poetry.
What was your favorite thing about SSU? My favorite thing about SSU was the faculty and my fellow students in the English Department.
Why did you want to major in English? I was not sure what I wanted to for a career, but I knew that I wanted to spend four years reading everything I could.
If you are interested in connecting with Paul, you can reach out to him via email: ptuttle@gmail.com