As we wrap up Women’s History Month, we’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to Katie Grove. She is a workers’ compensation lawyer based out of MGC’s Greenville office, who joined the firm in 2011. A Greenville native, Katie attended the University of South Carolina for both her undergraduate and law degrees.
Katie is married to lawyer Will Grove, and they have three children, Mary Mac, Maggie and Tommy, along with a 12-year old pup named Andie.
What made you decide to go into law?
“I was a criminal justice major in undergrad and my senior year, I met with my advisor and they gave me some options that included becoming a police officer. I’m scared of the dark, so I knew that wasn’t going to work out for me. That’s when they said I could become a lawyer—I have a lot of lawyers in my family, so I decided maybe that was a better path for me.”
You’ve grown up in the firm, starting as an Associate and are now a Member. Throughout this time, you’ve been in a number of leadership roles. Currently, you are serving your community as the president of the Greenville County Bar Association. How do you find balance?
“With a lot of support. I am lucky. I have a very supportive husband who helps out at home, but also a lot of support from inside the firm. My whole team—every single person, my legal assistant, my paralegals, other lawyers, our amazing support staff throughout the firm—makes it possible to juggle it all.
I’ve had mentors within the firm to guide me throughout the years on how to balance and have a good work-life balance and find time to do it all. There is a lot of support within the firm. MGC really does stand behind the women.”
Why is it important for women to step into leadership roles both within the firm and outside of the firm?
“I think it’s important for women to be in leadership positions to make sure that all women have a voice and that they do have a seat at the table, and also to show younger women that there is room. Historically, there’s always been talk about a glass ceiling in the practice of law—there’s never been a glass ceiling at MGC for women. I think it’s important to step up into these positions and make the time to be in these roles. To give a voice to women, but also to show younger generations that there’s no stopping.”
What advice would you give a younger female lawyer coming into MGC or into the legal industry in general?
“One thing I think is important when you’re coming in, whether it’s MGC or anything in the legal field, is to find what you’re passionate about and go with it. When I was introduced to Leadership MGC being a part of that first class, I just knew that that was something that was awesome and it was a program that I wanted to continue to be involved with and I jumped at the opportunity to do that.
You just really need to find your spot and what you like to do and then make that work for you. It’s easy to find time for things that you really enjoy.”
What’s your favorite things about MGC?
“It’s cliché but it really is the people from the very top all the way down. I have never met someone at MGC that didn’t truly care about our people and our clients. I think it comes across if you talk to any person in the firm that our people are our priority. I think people overall really make up the best part of MGC.”