Skadden (Wilmington, DE) vs. Paul Hastings (Atlanta, GA) Forum

[dixiecupdrinking]

The "just do Philly bro" thing is a bit questionable. Philadelphia is a 29 mile commute along I-95 from Wilmington. Unless Philly and Wilmington have no traffic, it's going to be a 40+ minute commute from downtown to downtown. And I-95 an get insanely backed up on certain days. Sure you can live in the 'burbs in-between, but do you really want to live in the 'burbs as a young professional?

Paul Hastings is in Bank of America Plaza, right across the interstate from Georgia Tech's campus. I used to live right by there. There are apartments within walking distance of the building, and you're less than a 5 minute drive to anything in midtown. Or, if you insist on commuting by car, it's right off I-85 so you can live in Buckhead and be at work in 10 minutes.

Underselling Atlanta's traffic problems just a bit eh...

Atlanta has bad traffic, but 85 is reasonably clear in the morning for the short hop down from buckhead to midtown. The traffic problem is more for the millions of people who commute in the larger metro area. Even then it's highly asymmetrical. My reverse commute from buckhead to gwinett up 85 was a breeze.

This is true. Atlanta is the only place I've ever been where rush hour traffic is backed up in the burbs and clears up when you get downtown. If you're a young associate, there really isn't a reason to live in the places where the traffic's the worst.

[BruceWayne]

This is true. Atlanta is the only place I've ever been where rush hour traffic is backed up in the burbs and clears up when you get downtown. If you're a young associate, there really isn't a reason to live in the places where the traffic's the worst.

He should live in Atlantic Station. He could just catch the MARTA and get off at the North Avenue stop--Paul Hastings is across the street from the North Ave stop. That's a 6 minute ride. You can't get to work at a law firm in NYC that fast on the subway--unless you're paying 3500K a month for rent.

[rayiner]

The thing that may be a culture shock about Atlanta is the lack of density. It isn't a "city" in the sense that many people in the northeast think when they think "city." You will be driving everywhere. There are intown neighborhoods with no sidewalks. It's essentially a strip of skyscrapers running along Peachtree for about 8-10 miles, surrounded by suburbs that begin five blocks away on either side.

That said, Atlanta, at least "inside the perimeter," is relatively progressive and has lots to do. But outside of a small handful of neighborhoods, you will not be living an urban lifestyle. (Many people prefer this.)

Depends where you are. The area around Emory is basically suburb despite being well within the city. Atlantic City is highly walkable. Where I lived in Buckhead, I was within walking distance of a Taco Mac, a Target, a Best Buy, a few restaurants, a MARTA station, and a place to get my hair cut. My friend has a condo near Virginia Highlands, and he can walk to a ton of bars and restaurants.

[Sandro]

If you are living in ATL, and not 30 minutes outside, traffic isnt different from any other metro area. Like other ppl said, its actually fairly clear through downtown. Midtown to buckhead is a breeze usually.

[dixiecupdrinking]

If you are living in ATL, and not 30 minutes outside, traffic isnt different from any other metro area. Like other ppl said, its actually fairly clear through downtown. Midtown to buckhead is a breeze usually.

Yup. God help you if you ever need to get to Marietta at 6 pm, but Atlanta itself really isn't so bad.

My suspicion is that Skadden in DE would be more of a limited practice. I'd go ATL here myself. If you have friends or connections in the northeast, it would change things, though. Don't underestimate regional density; if you are in Atlanta, you are in Atlanta, end of story. You can get to the beach in a few hours, but for the most part you're surrounded by pretty uninteresting stuff and sparsely populated stuff for hours in any direction. You're likely flying a couple hours any time you go on business trips, personal vacations, etc. Wilmington is an easy drive or train ride to DC, Philly, NYC, etc. It does give the regions a different feel (though I know nothing about Delaware itself and imagine it's a bit bleaker than Atlanta; I've met one guy working in Wilmington, and he was commuting from Philly).