Questions to ask During Callback

[Anonymous User]

What are some good questions to ask at the callback stage if you already know the firm well and are not told about the interviewer before hand. At the screening stage, I just asked about the interviewers personal experience. I already worked for said firm before law school so it is difficult to ask questions about the firm that I don't already know. Thoughts?

[TooOld4This]

Please, please think about this logically and stop trying to go off of some sort of generic TLS script. If you already worked for the firm, it is perfectly fine to say that because of this you don't have any questions and that you hope that you have an opportunity to come back. The "do you have any questions" question can be serious, but very often is just a "filler" question that gets thrown in at the end as a perfunctory way of closing out the interview. If you've had a good/full interview or have experience with the firm, there is no problem saying that you don't have any more questions.

[NotMyRealName09]

For interviews, you just need to relax. Believe me, I know this is easy for me to say now, but you have to just go in clear headed and let it flow. Walk in there like you don't give two shits about a fuck. Like you do this every day. You're excited to be there, you truly are, but you just want to bullshit with the interviewer about what the job is like, what they like about their practice, what they like about their firm, and how all of that is oh so interesting because you've always wondered about ___________. Just listen to what they say, and keep prodding them for more information about their practice. You HAVE to have the mentality that you do not NEED that job. If you NEED it, you'll come off desperate.

If you memorize a list of verbatim questions you intend to ask, you will come off as a boring ass robot, and you'll probably make yourself nervous out of fear of forgetting a question.

Let me put it this way. If you leave your interview and no one laughed once, that interview could have gone better. You leave them laughing and they'll want you back. People like fun people. If you're boring, well, there's always that GPA and, um, Law Review to discuss.....

(Of course, some of this depends on the interviewer, but if the interviewer is boring, well, that says something about the firm.)

SHORTER ANSWER: You already nailed it - ask them about their professional life, how they got there, etc.

[Anonymous User]

during my last call back, i had lunch with a pair of associates, one of which seemed somewhat contemptuous of summers, judging by some of the anecdotes she told.

when i asked her the standard: how often do you meet clients, she said something like "you know, you guys always assume when you ask this question that we want to actually meet clients. but most of the time, i don't: they don't fully understand the issue, they can't help me, they mostly just want to know how things are going, and its essentially a progress report meeting, which can be difficult when there is no real progress. a lot times client meetings are a waste of time." (paraphrasing)

though i was a bit taken aback, it was good to hear someone say this, as that is my natural inclination as well: judging by everyone else, it seems like client contact is something i should want, but i never felt that way. yet i asked the question because it was a "standard question." eh... of course next time i will ask "do you enjoy meeting clients?" first...