Top Law Schools

Deciding between Michigan and NU, would greatly appreciate the advice.

The biggest factor to me is which school will best help me achieve my career goals*. I'm going to try for biglaw, or maybe boutique. Though it's hard to say as a 0L, I believe I'd like to go into IP (I'm an engineer), or perhaps corporate law (finance background as well, though I know this helps less). I also have international interests, though to a lesser extent. If it's relevant I can provide details on that. Yeah, pretty varied, I know.
Geographically speaking, I'm fairly open. I'd be more than happy in Chicago/DC/NYC, but I know Cali's important for IP so I suppose there's that to consider as well. Er, hope that doesn't make me sound flippant, but I honestly believe there are many places I could settle in long-term and be happy.

I know I'm painting a best-picture scenario here and that only the top X% will have these options available, so should my sole concern be picking the school where X is largest?
They're ranked very similarly, so I've looked into biglaw placement and seen that NU has an edge. Michigan claims that this is solely because of local Chicago placement and that nationally they do better. Thoughts?
And if there IS a difference, is it significant enough to base a decision off of, or should I be considering intangibles?

I've visited both campuses, though I haven't been to the NU ASW yet. If it turns out the above is a negligible difference and it comes down to campus feel/location, I'm torn. Geographically they're very different, but I honestly could see myself in both environments. I haven't spent a lot of time in Chicago, but I've spent time in a similarly sized city and I'm sure I'd like it there. I also thought Ann Arbor was great and that I'd be happy there, too. As far as clicking with the student body, I really like Michigan, guess I'll have to wait and see on NU.

I know my situation has a lot of ambiguities and "weeeeellll, I like both" sorts of choices, so I tried to provide as much info as possible... hope it wasn't too much. Thanks again for any and all input

Edit based on request:
I am currently only deciding between Michigan and NU. For various family reasons, I applied very late in the cycle and am still waiting to hear back on some T14's, but these are my two main options right now.
COA is not a concern, however if it is helpful:
(based on values from school sites and personal info)
Michigan: ~55
NU: ~70
Financed by family
I am not in a position to apply next cycle, but if it really helps: 170/3.6
I have ties in Texas, Michigan, and to a lesser extent Cali.

Think that covers anything not originally mentioned, if that's helpful.

*I am not currently considering scholarships as part of my decision.

In order to receive the best feedback in this forum, please provide as much of the following information in your original post as possible:

-The schools you are considering
-The total Cost of Attendance (COA) of each. COA = cost of tuition + fees + books + cost of living (COL) + accumulated interest - scholarships. Here is a helpful calculator.
-How you will be financing your COA, i.e. loans, family, or savings
-Where you are from and where you want to work, and other places where you have significant ties (if any)
-Your general career goals
-Your LSAT/GPA numbers
-How many times you have taken the LSAT

Someone else is paying for it and you have an IP/engineer background? Go wherever you like.

rej wrote: I've looked into biglaw placement and seen that NU has an edge. Michigan claims that this is solely because of local Chicago placement and that nationally they do better. Thoughts?
And if there IS a difference, is it significant enough to base a decision off of, or should I be considering intangibles?

They're blowing smoke up your ass. Mich seems to do a little better in DC than NU, but not significantly enough to matter. NU obviously places MUCH better in Chicago, but it also places a bit better in NYC and marginally better (again, not really enough to matter) in CA. IMO, the differences in placement are only worth putting much stock in if you for sure want to be in the home market of either school. Otherwise, it shouldn't be a big factor.