The lawyer who didn’t waste any time before making a difference

David Burick's career journey is a testament to what determination, hard work and a sense of purpose can accomplish, especially at a young age. When David (he/him/his) started his Freddie Mac career in the summer of 2020 as a legal intern in our university program, he saw the professional and personal opportunity to make both the organization and his community more welcoming and inclusive places.

During his internship, David displayed a commitment to learning and a knack for tackling complex legal matters, which his supervisors noticed. Even as an intern, David recognized how his work fit into Freddie Mac’s broader mission and understood how this early-career opportunity could launch him into bigger roles with more responsibility

"I always knew where my work fit into what the full-time attorneys were doing," David said. "For example, during my internship whenever I was tasked with a project, I always spoke with the attorney who assigned it to learn how the work I was doing would be used, so I knew exactly where it fit in with the mission of the company. This gave me more buy-in, and I never felt like I was doing busy work."

Once he completed the summer internship program, David was asked to stay on as a part-time intern during the school year until he graduated from law school in May 2021, at which point he was offered a full-time opportunity as a counsel in the financial disclosure group of Freddie Mac's Legal Division.

Today, David continues to make invaluable contributions in his day-to-day work, his position as the chair of the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Events Planning Committee in Legal, and in his roles in three of Freddie Mac's employee-led business resource groups (BRGs): Rising Leaders, Pride and Abilities.

David, who lives with Tourette Syndrome, is proud to share his story and has become an advocate for disability and neurodiversity education and justice. As part of his efforts, he helped create and launch the Neurodiversity Road Show, a presentation to educate company leaders about neurodiversity, how it intersects with disability, how it impacts people in the workplace and the gifts that come with it.

"I’ve helped present this to the majority of Freddie Mac divisions, a few BRGs and an outside law firm. We also just scheduled it for a trade association for attorneys," David said. "This presentation has influenced a lot of the core work that the DEI division is currently doing on workforce diversity at Freddie Mac."

Outside of his work at Freddie Mac, David is passionate about helping transgender and gender non-conforming residents of Washington, D.C. change their names and gender markers on government-related documents. He works to make them feel empowered through this arduous, and often confusing, process.

His efforts were recognized by the community when he received a 2022 Emerging Human Rights Leader award from the DC Commission on Human Rights. The award, presented each year to three emerging leaders aged 30 years or younger who have displayed a commitment to advancing human rights in the District, reflects the good work David has already accomplished in a career just getting started.

“I was not expecting to win,” David said, “but I was honored to be recognized for my work both at Freddie Mac and in my community.”

Grow your career in an inclusive environment where you will be welcomed as your authentic self. Discover opportunities at Freddie Mac today.