Marginal biglaw bidder in need of good strategy(DC/LA) Forum

[Anonymous User]

T15-18 range school, top 15%-20%, very bad writing grades (B-, I seemed never to know what the instructor was expecting), no significant work experience, science (chem) background and patent bar eligible (all the things make me a biglaw hopeful but not safe at all). Want LA (home market) and DC for regulatory work. Have demonstrable interest in healthcare regulation (prior experience, summer work in related area, etc). Mostly want to do healthcare/energy regulation or patent but am willing to do anything to get into biglaw. Have a popular foreign language as a second native language. Just wondering if I am ever able to get DC since its a competitive market... Plan to mass mail DC firms soon. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

[Anonymous User]

If you're at UCLA, you're in pretty good shape for LA market.

[Anonymous User]

If you're at UCLA, you're in pretty good shape for LA market.

Except that LA doesn't have what I want...

[thesealocust]

That's not a great place to be targetting DC, but probably not impossible. Make sure you aggressively target other, less-than-perfect markets or jobs, but no harm in trying for DC. You're definitely not out of contention (just in a very crowded group of others who also are not out of contention, credentials wise...)

[Anonymous User]

wats top15% at UCLA? 3.7?

[rad lulz]

Yeah I wouldn't consider you marginal bro

[anonymous2012]

Firms are crazy for healthcare right now. Don't discount the LA firms moving into healthcare, because every firm I know of has a busy and thriving healthcare practice or is trying to develop and recruit for one. Major hospital GC's are leaving and joing private practice en masse.

[Anonymous User]

Firms are crazy for healthcare right now. Don't discount the LA firms moving into healthcare, because every firm I know of has a busy and thriving healthcare practice or is trying to develop and recruit for one. Major hospital GC's are leaving and joing private practice en masse.

This. Until (relatively) recently I worked for a government entity that did a lot of healthcare work (lit and reg) in a secondary market. The attorneys would get calls every month or so from opposing counsel saying that they needed to hire someone and offering 2x-3x the government salary. (Which may or may not explain the "until (relatively) recently" part from above. )