Top Law Schools

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:Hey everyone,

Since a bunch of people are asking (is X school good if I want to do BigLaw in location Y?) I thought it would be helful for us to compile a master list of schools and their BigLaw reaches/footprint. Basically I think it would be helpful for people trying to decide which schools to attend if they want to go into biglaw in a specific market. I'll start with some but please feel free to make any corrections/additions and I'll update the list.

1. Yale Law - National
2. Harvard Law - National
3. Stanford Law - National
4. Columbia Law - National
5. U of Chicago Law - National
6. NYU Law - National
7. Penn Law - National
8. Berkeley Law - National
9. Michigan Law - National
10. UVA - National
11. Duke - National
12. Northwestern - National
13. Cornell - National
14. Georgetown - National

15. UT - Texas, South
16. Vanderbilt - Southeast, South, (Some NY/DC)
17. UCLA - West Coast, California, Southwest.
18. Wash U - Midwest, Chicago, (Some South)
19. USC - West Coast, California, Southwest
20. BU - Boston, New York

BigZuck wrote:I get what you're going for here but I don't think it's really going to work.

UT for instance- What is "South?" By and large it's probably significantly easier to get a big law job in New York from UT than it is to get one in Georgia. But as with everything law school related, it depends. Also, is Georgia "South"? Is it "Southeast"?

trebekismyhero wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:Hey everyone,

Since a bunch of people are asking (is X school good if I want to do BigLaw in location Y?) I thought it would be helful for us to compile a master list of schools and their BigLaw reaches/footprint. Basically I think it would be helpful for people trying to decide which schools to attend if they want to go into biglaw in a specific market. I'll start with some but please feel free to make any corrections/additions and I'll update the list.

1. Yale Law - National
2. Harvard Law - National
3. Stanford Law - National
4. Columbia Law - National
5. U of Chicago Law - National
6. NYU Law - National
7. Penn Law - National
8. Berkeley Law - National
9. Michigan Law - National
10. UVA - National
11. Duke - National
12. Northwestern - National
13. Cornell - National
14. Georgetown - National

15. UT - Texas, South
16. Vanderbilt - Southeast, South, (Some NY/DC)
17. UCLA - West Coast, California, Southwest.
18. Wash U - Midwest, Chicago, (Some South)
19. USC - West Coast, California, Southwest
20. BU - Boston, New York

Outside of t14, shouldn't really be targeting big law, but are we at least limiting it to at least schools with 25% or more big law?

University of Illinois - Chicago, St. Louis
Notre Dame - Chicago, Midwest
Fordham - New York
BC - Boston, maybe NYC

BigZuck wrote:I get what you're going for here but I don't think it's really going to work.

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote: Thanks! You really think that outside of T14 shouldn't be targeting biglaw? Not sure if I agree with that since T-20 seems to give you a solid chance and schools like BC and Fordham are very strong in their regions.

guybourdin wrote:

BigZuck wrote:I get what you're going for here but I don't think it's really going to work.

Also, once you fall outside of the top schools (be in 13, 14, 17 - I don't care; that's not the point) BL is just so unlikely no matter what market you're looking at, that saying something like "Notre Dame has a decent BL footprint in Chicago" will confuse people, because while that is true, most people at ND are NOT getting BL anywhere and its much more important they know that from the outset than know that ND does better in Chi than it does in Miami.

cavalier1138 wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote: Thanks! You really think that outside of T14 shouldn't be targeting biglaw? Not sure if I agree with that since T-20 seems to give you a solid chance and schools like BC and Fordham are very strong in their regions.

With the exception of UT students going for Texas biglaw, I'd definitely argue that non-T14 students shouldn't target biglaw. It's ok to have that ambition, but your 1L grades will significantly impact your ability to realize your goals. A T14 student has much less of a problem in that area.

This all ties back to the forced curve. If only the top third of the class can get biglaw, then two-thirds of the class really doesn't have much of a shot. So Fordham is going to be a better choice than, say, Cardozo. But that doesn't make Fordham a good option with any real debt.

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:

cavalier1138 wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote: Thanks! You really think that outside of T14 shouldn't be targeting biglaw? Not sure if I agree with that since T-20 seems to give you a solid chance and schools like BC and Fordham are very strong in their regions.

With the exception of UT students going for Texas biglaw, I'd definitely argue that non-T14 students shouldn't target biglaw. It's ok to have that ambition, but your 1L grades will significantly impact your ability to realize your goals. A T14 student has much less of a problem in that area.

This all ties back to the forced curve. If only the top third of the class can get biglaw, then two-thirds of the class really doesn't have much of a shot. So Fordham is going to be a better choice than, say, Cardozo. But that doesn't make Fordham a good option with any real debt.

Completely agree with 100% of this. Just thought it would be helpful for those (and there are many) here that ask about whether a specific school serves a particular market. I'm just sso used to seeing "Will this West Coast/Midwest TTT get me NY Biglaw?" questions.

Maybe a list might be helful for people that (and I agree with you) don't get into T14 or have to pay sticker, and can see where they should consider if they still have BL ambitions. Of course, they should definitely get that 1L grades will determine everything, but maybe it would be helpful for them to know that a 3.7 at Fordham can get you into NYC BL at a higher rate than a 3.7 at Kent.

guybourdin wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:

cavalier1138 wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote: Thanks! You really think that outside of T14 shouldn't be targeting biglaw? Not sure if I agree with that since T-20 seems to give you a solid chance and schools like BC and Fordham are very strong in their regions.

With the exception of UT students going for Texas biglaw, I'd definitely argue that non-T14 students shouldn't target biglaw. It's ok to have that ambition, but your 1L grades will significantly impact your ability to realize your goals. A T14 student has much less of a problem in that area.

This all ties back to the forced curve. If only the top third of the class can get biglaw, then two-thirds of the class really doesn't have much of a shot. So Fordham is going to be a better choice than, say, Cardozo. But that doesn't make Fordham a good option with any real debt.

Completely agree with 100% of this. Just thought it would be helpful for those (and there are many) here that ask about whether a specific school serves a particular market. I'm just sso used to seeing "Will this West Coast/Midwest TTT get me NY Biglaw?" questions.

Maybe a list might be helful for people that (and I agree with you) don't get into T14 or have to pay sticker, and can see where they should consider if they still have BL ambitions. Of course, they should definitely get that 1L grades will determine everything, but maybe it would be helpful for them to know that a 3.7 at Fordham can get you into NYC BL at a higher rate than a 3.7 at Kent.

imo, the people you are thinking this thread will serve will never use the search function to find this thread, and, even if this thread shaped up into someone that could be helpful, if someone linked them to this thread, they would say something like, yeah, well the thing is, my situation is kind of unique because I was sick when I took the lsat and know I'm a 175+ person who will be in the top 5% of their class, and I do have pretty significant ties to that market (my Uncle's ex-wife lives there and we text a lot still), so now do you think texas tech is a good idea for Seattle biglaw?

guybourdin wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:

cavalier1138 wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote: Thanks! You really think that outside of T14 shouldn't be targeting biglaw? Not sure if I agree with that since T-20 seems to give you a solid chance and schools like BC and Fordham are very strong in their regions.

With the exception of UT students going for Texas biglaw, I'd definitely argue that non-T14 students shouldn't target biglaw. It's ok to have that ambition, but your 1L grades will significantly impact your ability to realize your goals. A T14 student has much less of a problem in that area.

This all ties back to the forced curve. If only the top third of the class can get biglaw, then two-thirds of the class really doesn't have much of a shot. So Fordham is going to be a better choice than, say, Cardozo. But that doesn't make Fordham a good option with any real debt.

Completely agree with 100% of this. Just thought it would be helpful for those (and there are many) here that ask about whether a specific school serves a particular market. I'm just sso used to seeing "Will this West Coast/Midwest TTT get me NY Biglaw?" questions.

Maybe a list might be helful for people that (and I agree with you) don't get into T14 or have to pay sticker, and can see where they should consider if they still have BL ambitions. Of course, they should definitely get that 1L grades will determine everything, but maybe it would be helpful for them to know that a 3.7 at Fordham can get you into NYC BL at a higher rate than a 3.7 at Kent.

imo, the people you are thinking this thread will serve will never use the search function to find this thread, and, even if this thread shaped up into someone that could be helpful, if someone linked them to this thread, they would say something like, yeah, well the thing is, my situation is kind of unique because I was sick when I took the lsat and know I'm a 175+ person who will be in the top 5% of their class, and I do have pretty significant ties to that market (my Uncle's ex-wife lives there and we text a lot still), so now do you think texas tech is a good idea for Seattle biglaw?

Stylnator wrote:

guybourdin wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:

cavalier1138 wrote:

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote: Thanks! You really think that outside of T14 shouldn't be targeting biglaw? Not sure if I agree with that since T-20 seems to give you a solid chance and schools like BC and Fordham are very strong in their regions.

With the exception of UT students going for Texas biglaw, I'd definitely argue that non-T14 students shouldn't target biglaw. It's ok to have that ambition, but your 1L grades will significantly impact your ability to realize your goals. A T14 student has much less of a problem in that area.

This all ties back to the forced curve. If only the top third of the class can get biglaw, then two-thirds of the class really doesn't have much of a shot. So Fordham is going to be a better choice than, say, Cardozo. But that doesn't make Fordham a good option with any real debt.

Completely agree with 100% of this. Just thought it would be helpful for those (and there are many) here that ask about whether a specific school serves a particular market. I'm just sso used to seeing "Will this West Coast/Midwest TTT get me NY Biglaw?" questions.

Maybe a list might be helful for people that (and I agree with you) don't get into T14 or have to pay sticker, and can see where they should consider if they still have BL ambitions. Of course, they should definitely get that 1L grades will determine everything, but maybe it would be helpful for them to know that a 3.7 at Fordham can get you into NYC BL at a higher rate than a 3.7 at Kent.

imo, the people you are thinking this thread will serve will never use the search function to find this thread, and, even if this thread shaped up into someone that could be helpful, if someone linked them to this thread, they would say something like, yeah, well the thing is, my situation is kind of unique because I was sick when I took the lsat and know I'm a 175+ person who will be in the top 5% of their class, and I do have pretty significant ties to that market (my Uncle's ex-wife lives there and we text a lot still), so now do you think texas tech is a good idea for Seattle biglaw?

https://www.reddit.com/r/lawschooladmis ... h=6c1b45b0

somedeadman wrote:U of I places in stl?

trebekismyhero wrote:

somedeadman wrote:U of I places in stl?

Yeah, all the major StL firms recruit from U of I

Thomas Hagan, ESQ. wrote:Hey everyone,

Since a bunch of people are asking (is X school good if I want to do BigLaw in location Y?) I thought it would be helful for us to compile a master list of schools and their BigLaw reaches/footprint. Basically I think it would be helpful for people trying to decide which schools to attend if they want to go into biglaw in a specific market. I'll start with some but please feel free to make any corrections/additions and I'll update the list.

1. Yale Law - National
2. Harvard Law - National
3. Stanford Law - National
4. Columbia Law - National
5. U of Chicago Law - National
6. NYU Law - National
7. Penn Law - National
8. Berkeley Law - National
9. Michigan Law - National
10. UVA - National
11. Duke - National
12. Northwestern - National
13. Cornell - National
14. Georgetown - NationalStruggle Town

15. UT - Texas, South
16. Vanderbilt - Southeast, South, (Some NY/DC)
17. UCLA - West Coast, California, Southwest.
18. Wash U - Midwest, Chicago, (Some South)
19. USC - West Coast, California, Southwest
20. BU - Boston, New York
22. Notre Dame - Chicago, Midwest
30. BC - Boston, Maybe NYC
37. Fordham - New York
40. UIllinoisUC - Chicago, St. Louis

somedeadman wrote:

trebekismyhero wrote:

somedeadman wrote:U of I places in stl?

Yeah, all the major StL firms recruit from U of I

Dang, wish I had applied there now. I figured it was t14 plus WashU and SLU

trebekismyhero wrote:

somedeadman wrote:

trebekismyhero wrote:

somedeadman wrote:U of I places in stl?

Yeah, all the major StL firms recruit from U of I

Dang, wish I had applied there now. I figured it was t14 plus WashU and SLU

If you have the numbers might not be too late.