From chef to attorney: Doug Plass’s unconventional path to employment law

Doug Plass could be described as a lifelong learner, and he has a career journey to prove it.

Not many people can claim they’ve professionally cooked and practiced law.

Growing up in western Washington state, after high school he tried going to college, but realized it wasn’t quite the right time. He started working some different jobs before deciding to enroll in a culinary program in his mid-20s at a local community college in Seattle.

He earned his culinary degree and worked in different restaurants across the city, focusing on Italian, Mediterranean and Pacific Northwest seafood fare. Plass then launched a successful catering company with a friend that operated for a few years, but college kept calling.

“I thought maybe I should start engaging my brain a little more,” he explained.

So, he went back to school and finished his biology degree at the University of Washington, then completed a master’s degree in the same field at University of California, Davis.

Even with those degrees in hand, he ended up in Idaho back in the restaurant industry, both as a chef and restaurant owner, before opening his own restaurant in Stanley. He closed the restaurant five years later — right before the pandemic — and then began thinking about how he could tie his restaurant and business background together and turn it into a different career.

That’s when the idea of law school popped into his mind.

“I asked myself, ‘how could I use some of my life experience and make that useful to others,’” Plass shared.

He made the leap.

He remembers taking the LSAT while simultaneously helping someone he knew open a restaurant. Then he dove headfirst into law school. While working to complete his juris doctor at the University of Idaho College of Law, he connected with Idaho Employment Lawyers through an internship.

“I had the opportunity to use some of my experience as a business owner to help other business owners and managers figure things out and make sure they were compliant with the law,” he said.

He loved the work he was doing and felt it was a natural fit, so when he finished his law degree in 2022 and Idaho Employment Lawyers offered him a job, he jumped at the chance.

Now, four years later, Plass has been involved in a variety of different cases at the organization with business owners and entrepreneurs from all industries.

“I’ve been enjoying helping folks figure out how to do things right,” he shared. “What’s both interesting and challenging is you’re really helping people with what might be one of the worst things that’s ever happened to them. They might be thinking ‘this is horrible,’ but I really enjoy settling disputes.”

He added, “We have some difficult problems, but through negotiations and through arguments, discovery and figuring out what the facts are, I’m able to present my client’s position in a way that allows for some sort of resolution. Those days are always the best days.”

Plass said that he’s had a lot of support from people over the course of his life and naming just one mentor would be difficult. And today, he’s excited to have the opportunity to help impart some of his knowledge to others — especially those up and coming in the field of law.

“If you do something for a while, you get some knowledge and you want to share it,” he said.

His main piece of advice to others is simple and comes from his own life experience and career trajectory: Don’t be afraid to reinvent yourself.

“It’s not as big of a risk as you think it is,” Plass shared. “Try not to be so narrow in terms of what success is. When I decided to go to culinary school, I asked myself what the downside would be. If I didn’t end up using the degree, I would at least know how to cook. Law school was the same way … it changes the way you think. It gives you the ability to solve problems.”

Plass, who loves to explore Idaho’s rugged beauty during his off time, said that the future of his career is bright. He plans to continue honing his skills and deepen his employment law knowledge with the goal of finding better ways to help people.

“I look forward to the opportunities to help people avoid trouble, versus helping them deal with the trouble they already got themselves into,” he said.