1L summer position w/Plaintiff--BigLaw suicide? Forum

[Anonymous User]

I have the opportunity to work with a highly prestigious plaintiff's firm the summer of my 1L year; however, I also plan to participate in OCI at my school for 2L year (at t-10) in hopes of landing a position in a v100 litigation department. Do you think it would be suicide to work with a plaintiff's firm 1L year (workers comp, med mal, etc)? Or would the hands on experience with litigation be enough to cancel out any "conflicted associations/views"?

[Anonymous User]

There's nothing to "cancel out." It's a non-issue, IMO. It's legal experience, and that's all that matters for 1L SA.

[Cupidity]

Stupid unsupported fear.

[Anonymous User]

I worked at a PL firm my 1L year, ended up completely fine. Its great experience and you can say it helped you understand both sides

[Anonymous User]

The only people who care about this sort of thing are the territorial public defenders who hate people who have ever done anything resembling prosecution. On the civil side, no one cares, and diverse experience is universally considered a plus.

[buckilaw]

I have the opportunity to work with a highly prestigious plaintiff's firm the summer of my 1L year; however, I also plan to participate in OCI at my school for 2L year (at t-10) in hopes of landing a position in a v100 litigation department. Do you think it would be suicide to work with a plaintiff's firm 1L year (workers comp, med mal, etc)? Or would the hands on experience with litigation be enough to cancel out any "conflicted associations/views"?

What's a good resource to research plaintiffs' firms? How do you figure "prestige" for plaintiffs' firms?

[Anonymous User]

I have the opportunity to work with a highly prestigious plaintiff's firm the summer of my 1L year; however, I also plan to participate in OCI at my school for 2L year (at t-10) in hopes of landing a position in a v100 litigation department. Do you think it would be suicide to work with a plaintiff's firm 1L year (workers comp, med mal, etc)? Or would the hands on experience with litigation be enough to cancel out any "conflicted associations/views"?

What's a good resource to research plaintiffs' firms? How do you figure "prestige" for plaintiffs' firms?

I have wondered the same thing. There are a hand full of firms/attorneys that have name recognition. Don't know beyond that...Anyone have any ideas?

[ITE8NY]

There's no such thing as a prestigious plaintiff's firm. But, yeah, nobody gives a fuck what you do 1L summer so long as it's law related.

[traydeuce]

There are some kind of prestigious plaintiffs' firms, or at least some really good ones. I'm interviewing with Cohen Milstein next week for a position during the school year, and I'm kind of excited about that. I mean, just in lawsuits for Holocaust survivors, they've won $6.4 billion alone.

[Grizz]

There's no such thing as a prestigious plaintiff's firm. But, yeah, nobody gives a fuck what you do 1L summer so long as it's law related.

Big money's in plaintiffs work though.

[vanwinkle]

There's no such thing as a prestigious plaintiff's firm. But, yeah, nobody gives a fuck what you do 1L summer so long as it's law related.

I wouldn't go this far. Some employers will care what you did during 1L. Prestigious PI orgs look for folks who have established PI interest, some PDs are hostile to folks who interned with prosecutors, etc. But OP's case is not one of these exceptions, and it shouldn't matter at all in their case.

[romothesavior]

The only people who care about this sort of thing are the territorial public defenders who hate people who have ever done anything resembling prosecution. On the civil side, no one cares, and diverse experience is universally considered a plus.

Pretty much this.

[Anonymous User]

There's no such thing as a prestigious plaintiff's firm. But, yeah, nobody gives a fuck what you do 1L summer so long as it's law related.

False.

OP, I paralegaled at a prestigious plaintiffs' firm before law school and have been asked a few times about it. It isn't an auto-ding as much as an opportunity to briefly explain why you aren't philosophically bent on fighting the man and explaining that talented lawyers impress you. Also good for starting the "civility in litigation" conversation, how you don't hate the other side, but rather understand it's an adversary system.

Regarding prestige, I've had something like 20% of my interviewers (more in the city of my former firm) say, "Wow, that is a really prestigious firm" and ask me what it was like there. They're intrigued. These are V5, 10, and 20 interviewers.