Striking out at OCI- a frank discussion Forum

[BobSacamano]

How's pittsburgh this time of year?

Hey, I could be at Oklahoma or Kansas! Or any of those other schools. I shall never tell...

[IAFG]

tag for non-douchey reasons

[Anonymous User]

Plenty of people will be striking out. One of our employment folk(T25) said that OCI will employ about 10-20% of the students. For a few reasons, I passed on all of them. One of those reasons was our employment folk (hopefully not lying their ass off) said that due to the slow economy, we will be getting a lot more hires spring semester. Another reason is that plenty of jobs are available early, same with applicants. I had this issue 1L year: everyone applies for the early jobs. I got mine in the middle. It was a good job, but plenty of paying jobs, in my preferred market, came up afterwards after I accepted my offer. All the good applicants were gone, so they weren't as picky.

Maybe I hope I can be one of the few left when more spots open up.

Edit: And thanks Opera for the post. I like having the perspective when I'm balls deep into moot court and other stuff. I still remember when you were in a taxi picking up that copy of USNews. That was an epic/drunken night.

[boolaw]

The "you need to have a technical background to do IP" shtick is getting old and is inaccurate. I talked to IP lawyers at top firms that did not have technical backgrounds who said it makes them better suited to their work. A technical background is only absolutely necessary if you're talking about patents. Otherwise, it can be an advantage to not have one because eventually, you're going to have to present this information to a jury who also does not have a tech background. Lawyers who needed to understand it from the laymen's perspective will likely be able to explain it to the jury in a comprehensible way (without getting too technical and bogged down in details).

Secondly, there are a lot of non-technical aspects of IP. For example, working with artists and musicians can be a part of intellectual property, and having a technical background is not going to give you a boost in this area.

If you're interested in IP, you should definitely go for it. Talk to other IP lawyers that do not have a technical background. I'm sure you'll see whether it's a fit for you or not, even if you don't have a tech background.

[D. H2Oman]

For a few reasons, I passed on all of them. One of those reasons was our employment folk (hopefully not lying their ass off) said that due to the slow economy, we will be getting a lot more hires spring semester.

honestly, sounds like they were lying their asses off.

[romothesavior]

For a few reasons, I passed on all of them. One of those reasons was our employment folk (hopefully not lying their ass off) said that due to the slow economy, we will be getting a lot more hires spring semester.

honestly, sounds like they were lying their asses off.

Yeah, even as a naive 1L, I am pretty skeptical of this.

[OperaSoprano]

For a few reasons, I passed on all of them. One of those reasons was our employment folk (hopefully not lying their ass off) said that due to the slow economy, we will be getting a lot more hires spring semester.

honestly, sounds like they were lying their asses off.

To be fair, a lot of public interest organizations hire quite late. For those looking for biglaw, obviously there is no second wave coming in the spring, but there are employers that traditionally pick up summers much closer to the actual start of summer. Most of these positions are unpaid, though, and necessitate getting a stipend from your school.

To the above anon: thanks! That night is such fun to remember, and I saved the original copy of the rankings, which is in tatters now.

[pocket herc]

so for those who struck out at OCI, what are you doing now? Applying to smaller firms, etc.?

[Anonymous User]

The "you need to have a technical background to do IP" shtick is getting old and is inaccurate. I talked to IP lawyers at top firms that did not have technical backgrounds who said it makes them better suited to their work. A technical background is only absolutely necessary if you're talking about patents. Otherwise, it can be an advantage to not have one because eventually, you're going to have to present this information to a jury who also does not have a tech background. Lawyers who needed to understand it from the laymen's perspective will likely be able to explain it to the jury in a comprehensible way (without getting too technical and bogged down in details).

Secondly, there are a lot of non-technical aspects of IP. For example, working with artists and musicians can be a part of intellectual property, and having a technical background is not going to give you a boost in this area.

If you're interested in IP, you should definitely go for it. Talk to other IP lawyers that do not have a technical background. I'm sure you'll see whether it's a fit for you or not, even if you don't have a tech background.

your post is in the strange "entirely correct but misleading" range.

talking to partners at "top firms" is fine and dandy but thinking anyone can be them is a strawman. they probably got biglaw jobs too with 155 LSATs and median grades at a T2. the world today is a different place.

go see how many people are getting hired this year in "soft IP". I know 1 at my T14 and they have incredible softs that made them an auto-hire.

As rayiner has already posted - do people get hired without tech backgrounds? Certainly. But not predominantly. This is a lot like the "I know a guy who got a V5 at 3L OCI" thread as far as "PERSONAL ANECDOTES WHERE ME AND MY FRIENDS BUCK INDUSTRY TRENDS AND THEN TELL EVERYONE THAT THEY'RE ASSHOLES".

[Anonymous User]

So here's the deal. I was looking at this thread 24 hours ago trying to console myself for failing to land a job at OCI. A week ago, I thought my life was over because I had no offer. I had 5 callbacks and 2 rejections. I scrambled and I panicked. Less than 24 hours ago, I received a call from my top choice (Pre and post OCI). This was, and is my dream firm (at least for the next 2 years )

TLS readers, don't freak out yet. Good things will happen. It's still relatively early. I know someone who just received a callback this week. Until you're walking away from the mailbox with a rejection letter in hand, don't think you're done w/ everything. I would err on the side of caution and send out extra resume's and cover letters, but don't think that life is over because you haven't received an offer yet.

That being said, just remember that you will wake up in 5 years and appreciate that everything happened for a good reason, whether or not you get an offer from your top law firm. You will be a CEO, judge, partner, housewife, husband, surfer, farmer, or whatever; but you will be better off than if you had chosen not to depart down the path you had chosen. Big-law is not the end-all. Be passionate and love. You will not starve; you will not suffer. You're better off than 99% of the population in America. Be Happy

[pocket herc]

So here's the deal. I was looking at this thread 24 hours ago trying to console myself for failing to land a job at OCI. A week ago, I thought my life was over because I had no offer. I had 5 callbacks and 2 rejections. I scrambled and I panicked. Less than 24 hours ago, I received a call from my top choice (Pre and post OCI). This was, and is my dream firm (at least for the next 2 years )

TLS readers, don't freak out yet. Good things will happen. It's still relatively early. I know someone who just received a callback this week. Until you're walking away from the mailbox with a rejection letter in hand, don't think you're done w/ everything. I would err on the side of caution and send out extra resume's and cover letters, but don't think that life is over because you haven't received an offer yet.

That being said, just remember that you will wake up in 5 years and appreciate that everything happened for a good reason, whether or not you get an offer from your top law firm. You will be a CEO, judge, partner, housewife, husband, surfer, farmer, or whatever; but you will be better off than if you had chosen not to depart down the path you had chosen. Big-law is not the end-all. Be passionate and love. You will not starve; you will not suffer. You're better off than 99% of the population in America. Be Happy

kind of agree with the sentiment. The tone is insufferable though.

[Anonymous User]

So here's the deal. I was looking at this thread 24 hours ago trying to console myself for failing to land a job at OCI. A week ago, I thought my life was over because I had no offer. I had 5 callbacks and 2 rejections. I scrambled and I panicked. Less than 24 hours ago, I received a call from my top choice (Pre and post OCI). This was, and is my dream firm (at least for the next 2 years )

TLS readers, don't freak out yet. Good things will happen. It's still relatively early. I know someone who just received a callback this week. Until you're walking away from the mailbox with a rejection letter in hand, don't think you're done w/ everything. I would err on the side of caution and send out extra resume's and cover letters, but don't think that life is over because you haven't received an offer yet.

That being said, just remember that you will wake up in 5 years and appreciate that everything happened for a good reason, whether or not you get an offer from your top law firm. You will be a CEO, judge, partner, housewife, husband, surfer, farmer, or whatever; but you will be better off than if you had chosen not to depart down the path you had chosen. Big-law is not the end-all. Be passionate and love. You will not starve; you will not suffer. You're better off than 99% of the population in America. Be Happy

+1. Easy for you to be this happy because you ended up w/ a job, but I do think this puts everything in perspective. Now give me a job too.

[Anonymous User]

That being said, just remember that you will wake up in 5 years and appreciate that everything happened for a good reason, whether or not you get an offer from your top law firm. You will be a CEO, judge, partner, housewife, husband, surfer, farmer, or whatever; but you will be better off than if you had chosen not to depart down the path you had chosen. Big-law is not the end-all. Be passionate and love. You will not starve; you will not suffer. You're better off than 99% of the population in America. Be Happy

talk about /self

[IAFG]

If someone had said all that to Mr Optimism last week, I bet he would have slugged him in the face

[Anonymous User]

If someone had said all that to Mr Optimism last week, I bet he would have slugged him in the face

Foreal. He obviously meant well but it's so patronizing to say "big law is not everything, be happy, you'll be fine - oh by the way, i just got an offer and that put everything into perspective."

[Kohinoor]

So here's the deal. I was looking at this thread 24 hours ago trying to console myself for failing to land a job at OCI. A week ago, I thought my life was over because I had no offer. I had 5 callbacks and 2 rejections. I scrambled and I panicked. Less than 24 hours ago, I received a call from my top choice (Pre and post OCI). This was, and is my dream firm (at least for the next 2 years )

TLS readers, don't freak out yet. Good things will happen. It's still relatively early. I know someone who just received a callback this week. Until you're walking away from the mailbox with a rejection letter in hand, don't think you're done w/ everything. I would err on the side of caution and send out extra resume's and cover letters, but don't think that life is over because you haven't received an offer yet.

That being said, just remember that you will wake up in 5 years and appreciate that everything happened for a good reason, whether or not you get an offer from your top law firm. You will be a CEO, judge, partner, housewife, husband, surfer, farmer, or whatever; but you will be better off than if you had chosen not to depart down the path you had chosen. Big-law is not the end-all. Be passionate and love. You will not starve; you will not suffer. You're better off than 99% of the population in America. Be Happy

5 callbacks
1 offer
waiting to hear back from 2

Sounds like you're in the wrong thread.

[Anonymous User]

So yeah, good luck getting that job doing IP lit without a technical degree.

I already did, but thanks.

I did too - this guy is just bitter. Probably not even half of IP litigators have technical degrees.

[martha_c]

So yeah, good luck getting that job doing IP lit without a technical degree.

I already did, but thanks.

I did too - this guy is just bitter. Probably not even half of IP litigators have technical degrees.

Actually lots of IP litigators don't even have JDs - totally useless. They just start practicing straight out of high school

[vanwinkle]

Actually lots of IP litigators don't even have JDs - totally useless. They just start practicing straight out of high school

This kind of non-informative snarky response didn't need to be anonymous. People should keep in mind that making posts that don't need to be anonymous and are primarily for joking or making fun of other posters can lead to you being outed, warned, or banned.

[rynabrius]

Even if it is true that over half of IP litigators do not have technical degrees, that doesn't imply that half of IP litigator openings do not require IP degrees. It could be that the low hanging fruit has been plucked already.

[jchoggan]

Even if it is true that over half of IP litigators do not have technical degrees, that doesn't imply that half of IP litigator openings do not require IP degrees. It could be that the low hanging fruit has been plucked already.

During callbacks, multiple big firms told me they specifically recruit SAs without tech backgrounds for IP b/c they want them to learn from/reference experts, and then be able to break down the concepts in a way that a jury can grasp easily (an ability that's easy for a good litigator, but not necessarily easy for a good engineer). This was a new concept for me as well, but apparently it's not uncommon. Aside from specific patent litigation, there is no need for a tech background, and some firms consider it a liability.

[rynabrius]

Even if it is true that over half of IP litigators do not have technical degrees, that doesn't imply that half of IP litigator openings do not require IP degrees. It could be that the low hanging fruit has been plucked already.

During callbacks, multiple big firms told me they specifically recruit SAs without tech backgrounds for IP b/c they want them to learn from/reference experts, and then be able to break down the concepts in a way that a jury can grasp easily (an ability that's easy for a good litigator, but not necessarily easy for a good engineer). This was a new concept for me as well, but apparently it's not uncommon. Aside from specific patent litigation, there is no need for a tech background, and some firms consider it a liability.

I heard the same thing from some partners. However, that could be just marketing talk. Until I have reliable hiring data in hand, I am agnostic on the issue.

[awesomepossum]

who's frank?

[Anonymous User]

on my last legs. 2 interviews left for me next week before I "officially" strike out and killself.

[doyleoil]

who's frank?

http://www.tvfanatic.com/quotes/i-barel ... ng-t/#vote