Paul R. St. Lawrence III, Partner, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, 38

Job: Transactional attorney focusing on structured finance, derivative products, other complex financing transactions, and financial instruments and related regulatory issues. I represent commercial and investment banks, hedge funds and asset managers in a broad range of finance market activity. I also play a role in the firm's recruiting and development initiatives as the chairperson of the summer associate committee.

Community involvement: Member of the NY City Bar Association structured finance committee.

Career highlights: Election to partner at Cleary Gottlieb, January 2013. Part of Cleary Gottlieb’s market leading practice in the collateralized loan obligation market.

Why this career: The synthesis of finance and law. My other educational and professional experiences exposed me to areas of economics and the securities markets that I wanted to make a part of my legal practice.

Where you grew up: Boonton, NJ

Why DC: I attended Georgetown as an undergrad, fell in love with the city, met my wife there, and we never left.

First job: Ever: Marketing a year 2000 solution for Computer Horizons Corp in Mountain Lakes, NJ. First job post-college: legislative aide to a member of the Virginia House of Delegates.

Family: Wife, Gillian; daughter Dagny Taylor (21 months)

Free time: Exercise, travel with family, avid Nationals fan.

10 years from now: Grooming the next generation of finance partners at Cleary.

Favorite vacation spot: Bald Head Island, NC.

Bucket list: Return to Warsaw, Poland, where I studied abroad; take my family to Vienna, Austria; see the Nats win a World Series in person.

Daily habit: Dinner with my wife.

Startling fact: My two favorite music artists are Billy Joel and Lady Gaga.