LSAT Instructor -> T-14 -> BigLaw Associate Taking Questions Forum

[miamiman]

I have a huge interest in video game law. I worked, prior to law school, right down the street from you at a big video game company in market research. How do I get into this field and does my prior experience count for anything?

[PwnLaw]

I have a huge interest in video game law. I worked, prior to law school, right down the street from you at a big video game company in market research. How do I get into this field and does my prior experience count for anything?

The field is up and coming. Prior experience makes a big difference to me, but there are very few lawyers in the space, and even fewer who really grasp the product and the industry. It's a great place to be a young lawyer (unlike just about every other industry).

You can PM me for me info or just track me down and send me an email. I mentor 5-6 law students currently.

[PwnLaw]

Yikes. Flood of PMs. I'm drownnnninnggg..

[waldodanto]

all your inboxes are belong to us

[Richie Tenenbaum]

Yikes. Flood of PMs. I'm drownnnninnggg..

You're awesome man, thanks a lot. The biggest flaw in this site I think is the lack of posters who are out of law school. What you're contributing is incredibly helpful and appreciated.

Get in around 10:00 in the morning. Bill until about noon. 1-2 hour lunch (if I am doing biz-dev) or 20 minutes at my desk (if not). Work until about 7, go home and hang out with my lady. Start up work again around 11 and work until 2 or 3 in the morning.

Things can shift a fair amount from day to day, but that's the general idea. I'd say I average work related activities between 60-80 hours a week. Highest was around 120-130.

How long do you think you can continue this pace? Or is it less of "having to maintain it" and more of you enjoy your work so the hours aren't so bad?

The lady able to put up with the hours or does she want you to work less?

[PwnLaw]

all your inboxes are belong to us

OMG.

WTF.

BBQ.



I think I'm going to start another thread on entertainment/video game law.

[PwnLaw]

I had a really brutal year last year, and I needed a few weeks of vacation to recoop, but I'm doing fine now. I don't think I would enjoy a job that wasn't reasonably demanding, but this job can be pretty rugged at times. I'm not sure what the future holds, but I'm pretty happy right now and going strong.

The lady goes to bed around 11, which is when I go back to work so she really doesn't mind. We get 4-5 hours together each night and the weekends, which is better than most get. I just run lean on sleep.

[tru]

.

[Torvon]

I'm pretty outable at this point.

I agree. You've had an impressive career. Kudos.

[PwnLaw]

I had a really brutal year last year, and I needed a few weeks of vacation to recoop, but I'm doing fine now. I don't think I would enjoy a job that wasn't reasonably demanding, but this job can be pretty rugged at times. I'm not sure what the future holds, but I'm pretty happy right now and going strong.

The lady goes to bed around 11, which is when I go back to work so she really doesn't mind. We get 4-5 hours together each night and the weekends, which is better than most get. I just run lean on sleep.

GPA/LSAT????

And Scholly amount + offers???

Hard to remember. I think ~3.7 and mid 170s.

Half scholarship at UVA, full ride to Northwestern, and some others from Duke, Georgetown, etc. I don't remember. Highest ranked school I got into was Columbia.

[profs<3mycomments]

Can you list some firms in SF/SV/LA that would be good picks for someone with an interest in media/entertainment/web? The more the better.

[lovelylegal]

I had a really brutal year last year, and I needed a few weeks of vacation to recoop, but I'm doing fine now. I don't think I would enjoy a job that wasn't reasonably demanding, but this job can be pretty rugged at times. I'm not sure what the future holds, but I'm pretty happy right now and going strong.

The lady goes to bed around 11, which is when I go back to work so she really doesn't mind. We get 4-5 hours together each night and the weekends, which is better than most get. I just run lean on sleep.

GPA/LSAT????

And Scholly amount + offers???

[PwnLaw]

Can you list some firms in SF/SV/LA that would be good picks for someone with an interest in media/entertainment/web? The more the better.

Off the top of my head --

For Web:
Perkins Coie
Fenwick West
Wilson Sonsini
Gunderson Dettmer

Entertainment:
OMM
Irell
Mannatt
Loeb & Loeb
Sheppard Mullin
Latham
Greenburg Glusker

[PwnLaw]

I had a really brutal year last year, and I needed a few weeks of vacation to recoop, but I'm doing fine now. I don't think I would enjoy a job that wasn't reasonably demanding, but this job can be pretty rugged at times. I'm not sure what the future holds, but I'm pretty happy right now and going strong.

The lady goes to bed around 11, which is when I go back to work so she really doesn't mind. We get 4-5 hours together each night and the weekends, which is better than most get. I just run lean on sleep.

GPA/LSAT????

And Scholly amount + offers???

6-7 years ago or so.
Hard to remember. I think ~3.7 and mid 170s.

Half scholarship at UVA, full ride to Northwestern, and some others from Duke, Georgetown, etc. I don't remember. Highest ranked school I got into was Columbia.

What year was this? I am in mid 170s and have a 3.7 and sure didn't get the scholarship offers you did! Depending on what year you applied to law school, I think we might be comparing apples to peanuts

[ConMan345]

So just how good are the exit opportunities coming out of biglaw? How important is the prestige of the firm as far as your options afterward?

[Kochel]

In good times, exit opportunities for a Biglaw transactional associate are plentiful. My own experiences are from several years ago, but they were fairly typical. I would get cold calls from headhunters all the time, with in-house and lateral opportunities. Then, when I decided that the firm wasn't right for me long-term, I just picked up the phone and called one of the recruiters. I had my in-house job within weeks of that phone call.

ITE, things are different. Lots of in-house lawyers have been laid off over the past couple of years, and these are the prime competition for Biglaw associates looking to make the move. Obviously, there are exceptional companies and industries that have been less affected by the recession, but generally speaking it's a buyer's market for in-house lawyers. But as and when employment picks up in the general economy, so too will in-house hiring.

[ConMan345]

Do you have a sense of the exit options for litigation laterals? Transactional work seems mind-numbing...

[PwnLaw]

So just how good are the exit opportunities coming out of biglaw? How important is the prestige of the firm as far as your options afterward?

A great deal depends on circumstance. Prestige of the firm certainly matters when exiting to other firms (it's generally much easier to lateral to similar prestige or lower prestige firms, harder to go up the ladder). If you're looking to go to a company, then your firm's reputation in that industry is much more important. If your firm isn't super prestigious, but it's known as a top firm in something like FDA Regulations, then companies hiring for that position will be more inclined to take you over another candidate coming from a firm with less of a reputation in that particular space. This is particularly true for entertainment.

My general view is that you should aim for a market firm and then choose the one that suits your interests. For certain things, like finance, being in a prestigious firm in New York is certainly an advantage. If you just want to do labor and employment, then prestige will be a lot less important. It's all very context depenent.

[PwnLaw]

Do you have a sense of the exit options for litigation laterals? Transactional work seems mind-numbing...

Great for going to other firms, not so great for going in house (though more firms are bringing on litigators). Transactional folks have the option of going to another firm, into a company, or shifting over into business -- far more flexibility in options (though certain options aren't as deep).