Tax Accounting to Biglaw tax: Am I crazy? Forum

[ph14]

Yeah, that's definitely something tax lawyers do. At some big law firms, I think that's most of what the tax lawyers do (e.g., Wachtell). I haven't actually done any of it yet, but it sounds very interesting to me as well - structuring the transaction, telling the corporate lawyers what to do.

On that topic, I imagine your background would also be of value as a junior corporate associate -- due diligence, etc.

Correct, but tax appeals to be because I have heard there are marginal advantages in quality of life for tax attorneys. Also, I find tax law kind of interesting on a weird level.

Tax life can be a little bit better QOL than litigation or especially transactional attorneys, but obviously it varies. I know a tax associate, formerly with a V10 firm, who told me he billed as many or more hours than many of the people in his class and that he spent more nights sleeping in his office than he could count. Plus, apparently, there are not a lot of fluff or easy hours in tax as compared to other practices (e.g., sitting in a deposition as a junior associate).

Do the tax attorneys you know generally like their jobs more/less than other attorneys you know.

I don't know very many so i'm hesitant to make big generalizations like that. But as long as you are aware of that fact, I'll say that generally speaking they like their jobs probably slightly more on average. That might be, though, because a lot of the tax people I know really like tax. That makes sense to me, because you must really like tax if you commit to being a tax attorney. People who love tax go to tax. People who dislike everything or don't know what they like go to litigation or transactional work.

[dabigchina]

I don't know very many so i'm hesitant to make big generalizations like that. But as long as you are aware of that fact, I'll say that generally speaking they like their jobs probably slightly more on average. That might be, though, because a lot of the tax people I know really like tax. That makes sense to me, because you must really like tax if you commit to being a tax attorney. People who love tax go to tax. People who dislike everything or don't know what they like go to litigation or transactional work.

Solid advice. I guess the reason I am so hesitant is because I couldn't find that much info about tax exit ops and how much they pay.

[lecsa]

Stay. Your good exit options from biglaw tax are pretty much Big 4.

Wut? Associates who've left the tax practice group at my SA firm over the last ten years or so have gone: (1) in house, to clients; (2) to other big law firms; (3) to mid law firms, often as partners; and (4) to academia. A few have also left the profession or moved to another area of law.

(1) in house - lol. There are very few in house positions for tax attorneys.
(2) how is biglaw an exit option for biglaw?
(3) how are mid law firms an exit option for biglaw? We're talking about EXITING firm work because firm work for the most part blows.
(4) yeah, ok whatever. academia is not a legitimate option for 99.99% of law grads

This is why law students and 0Ls should not post advice.

I don't know what kind of salvation you're trying to find in law, OP, but firm work for the most part is 99% boring and mundane (no matter the practice group). If you're looking to do something more exciting, don't practice law.

[dabigchina]

Stay. Your good exit options from biglaw tax are pretty much Big 4.

Wut? Associates who've left the tax practice group at my SA firm over the last ten years or so have gone: (1) in house, to clients; (2) to other big law firms; (3) to mid law firms, often as partners; and (4) to academia. A few have also left the profession or moved to another area of law.

(1) in house - lol. There are very few in house positions for tax attorneys.
(2) how is biglaw an exit option for biglaw?
(3) how are mid law firms an exit option for biglaw? We're talking about EXITING firm work because firm work for the most part blows.
(4) yeah, ok whatever. academia is not a legitimate option for 99.99% of law grads

This is why law students and 0Ls should not post advice.

I don't know what kind of salvation you're trying to find in law, OP, but firm work for the most part is 99% boring and mundane (no matter the practice group). If you're looking to do something more exciting, don't practice law.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm curious about the bolded. What are you basing this on? Do most people in the tax department where you work not exit?

[star fox]

I would say go for M7 MBA. Your company may end up paying for it and you just have to commit to working there while you're in school and then I think three years after. Really really good exit options after all that

Edit: but I dunno how competitive you would be for admissions given your uGPA.

[BankruptMe]

I would say go for M7 MBA. Your company may end up paying for it and you just have to commit to working there while you're in school and then I think three years after. Really really good exit options after all that

Edit: but I dunno how competitive you would be for admissions given your uGPA.

I agree with this. A strong MBA could definitely help you rise through the ranks. Possibly even CFO later in life.

I know that F500 MBA Finance rotational programs pay 80k - 150k initially and within 10 years you are head of finance for a specific division.

[Hutz_and_Goodman]

The wisdom of TLS seems to be that tax law has better substantive experience for entering associates, and better exit options including in-house for a client, hedge fund, etc. (ex. http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=228283) than a lot of other big law positions because it is not an area of the law most people want to study, it is complicated, and every business deal has tax implications that need to be considered by attorneys.

If I were you I would at least consider the possibility of going to Davis or Hastings on a full ride, because given what you are saying that would be relatively low risk and you will have a great outcome if you get good grades. My sense (I may be wrong) is that with your background you might be able to over perform in hiring for tax law.

[dabigchina]

I would say go for M7 MBA. Your company may end up paying for it and you just have to commit to working there while you're in school and then I think three years after. Really really good exit options after all that

Edit: but I dunno how competitive you would be for admissions given your uGPA.

I agree with this. A strong MBA could definitely help you rise through the ranks. Possibly even CFO later in life.

I know that F500 MBA Finance rotational programs pay 80k - 150k initially and within 10 years you are head of finance for a specific division.

M7 MBA was actually something I considered long and hard about. My feeling is it is not really feasible because

1. Big4 work experience is looked down upon for MBA admissions. Most people in those those entering classes are a mix of investment bankers, consultants, and finance people from companies like Google and Apple. I would basically be their equivalent of a KJD.
2. MBA programs seem to be very sensitive to GPA, especially when the applicant's work experience is lackluster like mine. Furthermore, they don't see to care all that much about GMAT. There are very few "splitters."
3. MBA programs outside of M7 seem to be pretty much useless for breaking into fields. Most of the consulting and banking jobs go to people with prior experience in those fields.
4. My company absolutely does not pay for MBA for people on the tax/accounting side. They only pay for consultants. That is one of the main reason I dislike working here so much. Consultants are treated like gods and have great pay and better perks than we do.