Outside Defense Counsel Young Professional of the Year Award winner Deter discusses her career leading up to her current role as partner at Wood Smith Henning & Berman (WSHB), her favorite cases, her advice for young professionals entering the industry, and what she enjoys outside of work.
FINDING A WORK HOME
Deter landed her first job with a solo practitioner doing automobile insurance defense for rental car companies before moving to a boutique law firm doing architecture and engineering design defense. Then, she moved to WSHB, where she continues to do architecture and engineering design defense, design professional defense, and construction. “And, far and away, my favorite home is Wood Smith,” she says. “I’m very happy here.”
“Consistent and clear communication with your client and insurance carrier is absolutely the most important thing. You could have a case where liability is clearly against you, but if you properly report it to your client and carrier, they will be happy with your service no matter what. Being able to identify problematic cases, problematic facts, or good defenses—none of it matters unless you can efficiently communicate it to your client and carrier.”
Deter, on what it takes to be successful in insurance defense litigation.
A WELL-DESERVED AWARD
Deter says she was blown away when she received CLM’s Outside Defense Council Young Professional of the Year Award. “Being recognized by the community was truly humbling, and I was shocked. I was so proud…. The CLM community has been so important to me, and I’ve been attending conferences [and] local chapter events for years…. I believe so much in the CLM community to help build everyone’s careers up, so it’s really humbling to be recognized in such an important group.”
“I’ve been the mentor and the mentee, and I hope to always stay on both sides: to always have mentors that I can look up to and always have mentees that I’m working with and teaching—being able to share free-flowing ideas and understanding that the learning can come from either side of the relationship: that the mentor can learn from the mentee and vice versa.”
Deter, on what mentorship means to her.
FINDING BALANCE
Achieving work-life balance has become more challenging since Deter became a mother in 2024. However, “I think being a mom makes me a better lawyer, so everything balances itself out in that way. So, outside of work, I like to spend time with my daughter and take her to the ocean and the pool and just explore nature…. Prior to my daughter, I was actively racing in Ironman races, and I hope to get back to that one day. But right now, I’m choosing to spend time with my daughter.”
“Build allies around you to help you succeed in your career so that you have resources to go to throughout your practice. …Having a solid community foundation around you and people to discuss industry issues and concerns with is always going to help you along the way.”
Deter, on her advice for young professionals.