V15 Partner/OCI Interviewer Answering Questions... Forum

[fatduck]

let's say there are two interviewers, an associate and a partner, and a college roommate of the partner interviewer calls during the lunch break of OCI, and my interview is at 1:10pm. how much weight (approximately) will this have on whether i get a callback?


y'all are ridiculous

[sambeber]

let's say there are two interviewers, an associate and a partner, and a college roommate of the partner interviewer calls during the lunch break of OCI, and my interview is at 1:10pm. how much weight (approximately) will this have on whether i get a callback?


y'all are ridiculous

Probably worth a .27 GPA bump. Magic eight ball says odds look good.

[FlanSolo]

let's say there are two interviewers, an associate and a partner, and a college roommate of the partner interviewer calls during the lunch break of OCI, and my interview is at 1:10pm. how much weight (approximately) will this have on whether i get a callback?


y'all are ridiculous

Probably worth a .27 GPA bump. Magic eight ball says odds look good.

Good questions, but I think everyone really wants to know the answer the age-old questions:

-How much will 0L prep give a candidate an advantage at OCI, and if so, should it be listed on a resume? Should I mention that I purchased Delaney's, but only read the first three chapters?
-What type of laptop is best for guaranteeing callbacks?

[sambeber]

.

[Anonymous User]

Top 10 school. GPA right under the median, but wrote onto LR.

How much of a boost is LR on the resume?

Enough for a screener/ CB?

(Does this count as a "special circumstance?")

[Anonymous User]

Top 10 school. GPA right under the median, but wrote onto LR.

How much of a boost is LR on the resume?

Enough for a screener/ CB?

(Does this count as a "special circumstance?")

Useless without saying which firm. And no this isn't that "special."

You still have 0% shot at firms that really care about grades like S&C. You don't have a good shot at any firm that cares about grades, and all firms that care about grades will always be a reach for you even with a LR.

This is all assuming you are not at HYS.

[dingbat]

How does your firm select 1L summer associates, and how does one go about becoming a 1L summer associate?

(I'm assuming that all the top firms are still open to hiring 1L SAs, even if they don't advertise as such)

[itbdvorm]

How does your firm select 1L summer associates, and how does one go about becoming a 1L summer associate?

(I'm assuming that all the top firms are still open to hiring 1L SAs, even if they don't advertise as such)

No idea. Goes back to the "be very special" thing. Have connections, very very top schools, etc.

[Anonymous User]

What does your background check consist of? Do you do any special checks for military vets, or do you only check provided references and criminal records?

In the past when military service was nearly universal, many employers requested copies of a service member's DD214, which can contain derogatory information even with an honorable discharge.

In addition, a dishonorable discharge will show up on a criminal records check, but some administrative discharges--like a "general" discharge or Don't Ask, Don't Tell discharge--will not. Do you check for those specifically?

[CanadianWolf]

Thanks for tipping him off !

[20130312]

What does your background check consist of? Do you do any special checks for military vets, or do you only check provided references and criminal records?

In the past when military service was nearly universal, many employers requested copies of a service member's DD214, which can contain derogatory information even with an honorable discharge.

In addition, a dishonorable discharge will show up on a criminal records check, but some administrative discharges--like a "general" discharge or Don't Ask, Don't Tell discharge--will not. Do you check for those specifically?

The bolded is such a huge violation of privacy (even going beyond the credit check / drug testing that has become the norm). Do you know if law firms ask for this from former private sector employers who require their employees to fill out DD214's in order to get a security clearance?

[Perseus_I]

What does your background check consist of? Do you do any special checks for military vets, or do you only check provided references and criminal records?

In the past when military service was nearly universal, many employers requested copies of a service member's DD214, which can contain derogatory information even with an honorable discharge.

In addition, a dishonorable discharge will show up on a criminal records check, but some administrative discharges--like a "general" discharge or Don't Ask, Don't Tell discharge--will not. Do you check for those specifically?

The bolded is such a huge violation of privacy (even going beyond the credit check / drug testing that has become the norm). Do you know if law firms ask for this from former private sector employers who require their employees to fill out DD214's in order to get a security clearance?

It's not a violation of privacy if you voluntarily apply for the job and consent to follow their hiring procedures. Nobody is forcing you to work for Big Lawl (except possibly Sally Mae).

[20130312]

It's not a violation of privacy if you voluntarily apply for the job and consent to follow their hiring procedures. Nobody is forcing you to work for Big Lawl (except possibly Sally Mae).

Not to derail this thread, but this type of logic is positively Orwellian.

[itbdvorm]

It's not a violation of privacy if you voluntarily apply for the job and consent to follow their hiring procedures. Nobody is forcing you to work for Big Lawl (except possibly Sally Mae).

Not to derail this thread, but this type of logic is positively Orwellian.

No idea how our background checks work...but wouldn't be surprised if we ask for stuff like that.

[Perseus_I]

It's not a violation of privacy if you voluntarily apply for the job and consent to follow their hiring procedures. Nobody is forcing you to work for Big Lawl (except possibly Sally Mae).

Not to derail this thread, but this type of logic is positively Orwellian.

You are incorrect but have a valid point, I think. Most employers (no idea about law) will try to comply with this: http://www.stat.washington.edu/www/jobs/questions/

If law firm background checker wants to stay on the safe side, they would not ask for any document that might contain information unrelated to the job that might implicate a protected class (disabilities, LGBT, children, or religion). Because, then, if you deny the applicant even for some other reason (like bad credit or bad work references), you could end up with an expensive lawsuit. You'd probably win; hiring discrimination is almost impossible to prove, but why ask for trouble? A public records check would uncover most serious issues up to and including minor convictions and arrests.

And different states and municipalities have their own special lists of protected classes. Even arrest and certain conviction records are off limits in NY.

In short, it is absolutely not illegal to ask for this information, nor is it a violation of privacy, but it is risky. If you are concerned about an applicant passing the bar, many states--including TX, CA, and NY--require some kind of provisional C&F evaluation during the first year of law school. If I were in charge of background checks, I would request that.

Source: Former HR

[Anonymous User]

It's not a violation of privacy if you voluntarily apply for the job and consent to follow their hiring procedures. Nobody is forcing you to work for Big Lawl (except possibly Sally Mae).

Not to derail this thread, but this type of logic is positively Orwellian.

No, not Orwellian. You're applying to law firms that handle multiple billion dollar deals that move markets and you think it's Orwellian to make sure that you have a clean record?

[delusional]

It's not a violation of privacy if you voluntarily apply for the job and consent to follow their hiring procedures. Nobody is forcing you to work for Big Lawl (except possibly Sally Mae).

Not to derail this thread, but this type of logic is positively Orwellian.

No, not Orwellian. You're applying to law firms that handle multiple billion dollar deals that move markets and you think it's Orwellian to make sure that you have a clean record?

RC fail. The point was that it's a violation of privacy to demand that someone expose certain information even if they're free to not expose it and not apply for the job.

[20130312]

I said I wasn't going to derail this thread and will stick to that out of respect for the OP. You can PM me if you want to discuss.

[Anonymous User]

How do you view someone who goes to law school part time (lets say Fordham or Brooklyn Law) while during the day works full time as an analyst/associate at a big financial services firm (i.e. Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, Citi, etc.)? Is this work experience worth it if the person ranks between the top 20% - 50% of her/his class? In your opinion, what would this person need to do to be recruited at a BigLaw firm?

Thank you for your response.

[Anonymous User]

Lower T14, median first year, top 15% second year with CALI awards. On a secondary journal and have a 2L biglaw internship in a secondary market where my firm dominates (also most likely will get an offer from the firm). Have a strong interest in one particular area and got a few A's in classes related to that area.

If your firm does hire 3Ls and have openings in that particular area, would I be competitive given that my cumulative GPA is only around top 40%-ish? I want to move up because my current firm does not have a strong practice in the area I am interested in.

[Anonymous User]

Considering lawyers who want to eventually run businesses (and hire other lawyers), do you know of anyone who quits biglaw after 2-3 years and attends a top-3 business school to further his/her business ambition? This plan sounds good to me, but one does have to pay extra tuition and forfeit 2 years of biglaw salaries.

[ruski]

Considering lawyers who want to eventually run businesses (and hire other lawyers), do you know of anyone who quits biglaw after 2-3 years and attends a top-3 business school to further his/her business ambition? This plan sounds good to me, but one does have to pay extra tuition and forfeit 2 years of biglaw salaries.

i personally know of several people who went this route (going to wharton, harvard, and even stern). they are all insanely successful. none of them run their own business though but have pretty high management/executive positions at established companies, mostly at financial institutions who valued their deal experience

[Anonymous User]

Considering lawyers who want to eventually run businesses (and hire other lawyers), do you know of anyone who quits biglaw after 2-3 years and attends a top-3 business school to further his/her business ambition? This plan sounds good to me, but one does have to pay extra tuition and forfeit 2 years of biglaw salaries.

i personally know of several people who went this route (going to wharton, harvard, and even stern). they are all insanely successful. none of them run their own business though but have pretty high management/executive positions at established companies, mostly at financial institutions who valued their deal experience

Do you know if a third-party paid for their b-school tuition? Or they just did it themselves (do they even qualify for scholarships given their past high salaries)?

[itbdvorm]

How do you view someone who goes to law school part time (lets say Fordham or Brooklyn Law) while during the day works full time as an analyst/associate at a big financial services firm (i.e. Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, Citi, etc.)? Is this work experience worth it if the person ranks between the top 20% - 50% of her/his class? In your opinion, what would this person need to do to be recruited at a BigLaw firm?

Thank you for your response.

I would think that's a waste. That person would be much better off either going full-time or committing in full to the financial services firm.

And big differences in recruiting ability between Fordham and brooklyn

[itbdvorm]

Lower T14, median first year, top 15% second year with CALI awards. On a secondary journal and have a 2L biglaw internship in a secondary market where my firm dominates (also most likely will get an offer from the firm). Have a strong interest in one particular area and got a few A's in classes related to that area.

If your firm does hire 3Ls and have openings in that particular area, would I be competitive given that my cumulative GPA is only around top 40%-ish? I want to move up because my current firm does not have a strong practice in the area I am interested in.

Maybe? Probably not with us, but possibly with others. Still, the pitch to switch firms because you want to do X, and they're good at X, is usually better than other pitches...