Protégé: A pro tennis player’s journey to law

Jade Hopper, once a former gold medal-winning athlete, has traded the tennis courts for the courtroom. Here, she shares her journey and how her experience as a professional athlete has given her a competitive advantage in the legal field.

In this episode of The Protégé Podcast, host Grace Robbie speaks with Jade Hopper, a special counsel at Nicholes Family Lawyers, about her career as a professional Australian tennis player, the challenges she faced in balancing her law degree with travelling the world to compete in tennis tournaments, the factors that led her to retire from tennis and pursue a full-time career in law, and the disappointment she felt from her coaches and family when she decided to give up the sport.

Hopper discusses her legal career to date, highlights the skills and habits she developed as an athlete that have carried over into her work, how these skills have provided her with a competitive advantage in the legal field, emphasises that women who participate in sports can cultivate a mindset that can be instrumental in driving success within a professional environment, and shares the importance of being open to the twists and turns that may occur throughout one’s career.