The Door of Opportunity
Doing whatever it takes to secure a dream job.
When you practice law in the music industry, students often seek your guidance about breaking into the field. For Adrian Battiston ’05, who has spent six years as in-house counsel for what is now Anthem Entertainment, the advice is simple. “I tell them to put in the work so that they are ready when the door of opportunity finally opens,” he says. “And when it does, you don’t walk through it. You have to jump through it.”
When you practice law in the music industry, students often seek your guidance about breaking into the field. For Adrian Battiston ’05, who has spent six years as in-house counsel for what is now Anthem Entertainment, the advice is simple. “I tell them to put in the work so that they are ready when the door of opportunity finally opens,” he says. “And when it does, you don’t walk through it. You have to jump through it.”
Because he battled through surprises, delays and uncertainty on the path to his dream job, Adrian learned that’s the only way.
When he left CDS, he intended to be a doctor, only to discover healthcare wasn’t to his liking. Pivoting his career plan, he completed a law degree at the University of Leicester in England. After graduation, he needed a way to re-enter the Canadian legal industry and so applied and was accepted as an Upper Year Transfer Student, in second year, at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law.
His arrival did not go smoothly.
Having been abroad, Adrian didn’t know that the only way to get a coveted summer job with a medium or large law firm in Canada is via an on-campus interview at the start of second year. Caught by surprise, he secured a grand total of zero interviews.
Facing an uncertain future, he turned to his interests for inspiration. “Music has always been central in my life,” he says. “I realized I wanted to be a music lawyer and decided to do whatever it took to make it happen.”
After a year of non-stop networking, researching and cold calling, Adrian got his chance right before his third year was set to begin. He landed a meeting with two lawyers at a boutique music law firm in Toronto. As the meeting was wrapping up, he made them an offer. “I didn’t have classes on Fridays, so I offered to sweep the floors or put stamps on letters. Anything to get my foot in the door.” They took him up on it.
He started out doing odd jobs. But by Christmas it had snowballed, and he was getting requests from lawyers all week long. As he took on more responsibility, he fell in love with the ethos of the firm. “It was such a cool vibe,” recalls Adrian. “No suits. Music playing all the time. Inspirational partners. Sophisticated work with clients who were Canadian music icons. In my head, this was the place I needed to be.”
The firm’s small size meant there weren’t funds for an articling position, so Adrian wrote his bar exams under a cloud of uncertainty. Then he got a call. A partner at the firm had recommended him to a corporate client in the music industry looking to hire a law student. He went from no job prospects to starting work Monday morning.
But on a two-month contract, the uncertainty continued. Then it was extended to five months. Then to a year. And then the CEO called Adrian into his office and said, “You aren’t going anywhere. You are going to be in-house counsel for us.”
The door of opportunity had opened and Adrian jumped through.
Looking back on the role CDS played in his journey, Adrian feels the school’s emphasis on balance helped to nurture his well-roundedness and passion for music. He also sees the interpersonal skills and relationships he built as game changing. “It is an invaluable strength to have a genuine network of people who support each other.”
Adrian’s CDS network is ever-present in his life. Along with his brother Daniel ’03, Adrian stays regularly connected to his friends from the Class of 2005 through a group chat. Members include Josh Tuttle, Armen Khajerian, Curtis Vickers, Gabe Jenkinson, Jamie Nelles, Jon Fiuza, Kyle Hubbard, Ryan Rudge, Steve Tafeit, Tom Finkle, and Zach Pancer.
How often are they in touch? All the time. “The other night, we had a chat going about which houses in Harry Potter correspond to which houses at CDS,” laughs Adrian. “And we play cards together, all the time!”
Back
When he left CDS, he intended to be a doctor, only to discover healthcare wasn’t to his liking. Pivoting his career plan, he completed a law degree at the University of Leicester in England. After graduation, he needed a way to re-enter the Canadian legal industry and so applied and was accepted as an Upper Year Transfer Student, in second year, at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law.
His arrival did not go smoothly.
Having been abroad, Adrian didn’t know that the only way to get a coveted summer job with a medium or large law firm in Canada is via an on-campus interview at the start of second year. Caught by surprise, he secured a grand total of zero interviews.
Facing an uncertain future, he turned to his interests for inspiration. “Music has always been central in my life,” he says. “I realized I wanted to be a music lawyer and decided to do whatever it took to make it happen.”
After a year of non-stop networking, researching and cold calling, Adrian got his chance right before his third year was set to begin. He landed a meeting with two lawyers at a boutique music law firm in Toronto. As the meeting was wrapping up, he made them an offer. “I didn’t have classes on Fridays, so I offered to sweep the floors or put stamps on letters. Anything to get my foot in the door.” They took him up on it.
He started out doing odd jobs. But by Christmas it had snowballed, and he was getting requests from lawyers all week long. As he took on more responsibility, he fell in love with the ethos of the firm. “It was such a cool vibe,” recalls Adrian. “No suits. Music playing all the time. Inspirational partners. Sophisticated work with clients who were Canadian music icons. In my head, this was the place I needed to be.”
The firm’s small size meant there weren’t funds for an articling position, so Adrian wrote his bar exams under a cloud of uncertainty. Then he got a call. A partner at the firm had recommended him to a corporate client in the music industry looking to hire a law student. He went from no job prospects to starting work Monday morning.
But on a two-month contract, the uncertainty continued. Then it was extended to five months. Then to a year. And then the CEO called Adrian into his office and said, “You aren’t going anywhere. You are going to be in-house counsel for us.”
The door of opportunity had opened and Adrian jumped through.
Looking back on the role CDS played in his journey, Adrian feels the school’s emphasis on balance helped to nurture his well-roundedness and passion for music. He also sees the interpersonal skills and relationships he built as game changing. “It is an invaluable strength to have a genuine network of people who support each other.”
Adrian’s CDS network is ever-present in his life. Along with his brother Daniel ’03, Adrian stays regularly connected to his friends from the Class of 2005 through a group chat. Members include Josh Tuttle, Armen Khajerian, Curtis Vickers, Gabe Jenkinson, Jamie Nelles, Jon Fiuza, Kyle Hubbard, Ryan Rudge, Steve Tafeit, Tom Finkle, and Zach Pancer.
How often are they in touch? All the time. “The other night, we had a chat going about which houses in Harry Potter correspond to which houses at CDS,” laughs Adrian. “And we play cards together, all the time!”
