“Got a Minute?” with Elena Hubbell, 3L

Welcome to UW Law’s “Got a Minute?” series. These are fun, short-answer interviews with 20 rapid-fire questions. We’ll find students throughout William H. Gates Hall as they study, wait for class or hangout with their classmates.
This week’s “Got a Minute?” interview is with Elena Hubbell, 3L.
UW Law: Are you originally from Seattle, and if not, where?
Elena Hubbell (EH): I'm from Elk Rapids, Michigan, originally.
UW Law: What’s one interesting fact about where you're from?
EH: My family has lived in Elk Rapids for about three or four generations.
UW Law: Did you take time off between undergrad and your law degree, and if so, what did you do during that time?
EH: Yes. I worked as an executive assistant for an economic development nonprofit called the Michigan China Innovation Center. They managed the state's relationship with China as well as tried to attract Chinese companies to invest in Michigan.
UW Law: Who would play you in a movie about your law school journey?
EH: Well, I've been told I look a lot like Jennifer Grey pre-nose job, so maybe her.
UW Law: What's the funniest or most unexpected thing a professor has said in class?
EH: I had Professor Calandrillo for contracts, and it wasn't anything he said, but he had his dentures in his pocket, and he pulled them out in class and showed them to all of us.
UW Law: Without looking, how many glass structures are in the courtyard?
EH: Three…four…three.
UW Law: It's actually four. Which fictional lawyer do you think would make the best law professor?
EH: Elle Woods from “Legally Blonde,” obviously.
UW Law: What’s your favorite part of the library to hang out?
EH: Just below the crystals — the glass structures — on L1. It's good when the sun's out to have a little vitamin D and sometimes dogs will run past the windows, which is kind of fun.
UW Law: If you could add a new class to the curriculum, what would it be called?
EH: How to avoid legal consequences when you're a protester. Maybe something along those lines.
UW Law: Where's your favorite spot on the UW campus, excluding William H. Gates Hall?
EH: Hansee Hall. I cleaned dorms on campus the summer before I started law school and I thought Hansee Hall was just really a beautiful building.
UW Law: How many different Law & Order TV shows have there been?
EH: I think three.
UW Law: The correct answer is eight. Which historical legal case would you travel in time to witness in person?
EH: I'm taking constitutional law right now, and I would love to go back in time and argue with the judges who wrote the Dred Scott and the Plessy v. Ferguson decisions, not that that would make any difference. I would just yell at them and insult them. Maybe also the Loving v. Virginia case.
UW Law: Where's your favorite spot to get a bite of food nearby?
EH: I really love the H-Mart Grab & Go, and Call a Chicken is also pretty good.
UW Law: Name one professor that should give a TED Talk and on what topic.
EH: I think Professor Nguyen giving a TED Talk on AI or privacy would be really interesting.
UW Law: If you had to argue in favor of pineapple on pizza in court, what would your opening statement be?
EH: I think my opening statement would be about how beautiful culture is in that it is always changing, and it never stays the same.
UW Law: What was the most recent class you attended, and what was a highlight from that class?
EH: I just came out of international business transactions. The highlight was Professor Winn talking about the European Union and how she thinks it's not going to last throughout the rest of her lifetime.
UW Law: What area of law would you like to pursue after you receive a J.D.?
EH: I would love to do antitrust law or regulatory law.
UW Law: Name one lawyer that inspires you, and why.
EH: In con law II, we've talked a lot about Thurgood Marshall and how his career trajectory is really inspiring, like working for the NAACP and taking down all of these separate but equal cases, and then being on the Supreme Court.
I'm taking it with Professor Feldman, and he made a point that I hadn't thought of before, which is, he's one of the few justices on the Supreme Court whose career before being on the Supreme Court is almost as important, if not more important, than his career on the Supreme Court.
UW Law: What's one class you're hoping to take while you're here?
EH: I'm pretty happy with all the courses that I've taken. I think, maybe, an international human rights course — if I'm able to fit that into my schedule — would be nice. But I'm pretty happy with all the classes I've taken.
UW Law: What's one interesting thing about you that people may not know?
EH: I had the shingles when I was four years old and had to be in the hospital for four days. Not many people had the shingles before they were, like, 70.