Top Plaintiffs' Firms? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Bump. I hear plaintiff side employment law is doing real well in ITE. Any recent grad working at one of these type of shops? How much are you making? And where are you working?

From my understanding, the top plaintiffs shops (almost exclusively plaintiffs...firms like Lieff Cabraser) pay base roughly $30k less than big law, at least to start. Not sure about salary progression.

On the flip side, there seems to be a better chance at partner at many of these places, and equity partners at p-side firms make a killing (more than big law in a good year, and probably on average for the top shops).

You can't use a firm like Lieff Cabraser as a proxy for plaintiff-side only employment firms. It's like comparing apples and apple sauce.

Not using them as a proxy, but more as a ceiling. These firms by their very nature are secretive about how much they pay, so if we can establish a "top" in terms of salary, we can at least start to get a range.

Firms like lieff and Cohen aren't, of course, employment exclusive, but I wasn't sure if poster was asking about pside shops with an employment practice or employment exclusive shops.

I was asking about employment exclusive shops, but only if they are plaintiff side. I guess these places would be considered boutiques. Firms that have somewhere in the range of 10-25 associates. Something along those lines would be great. It seems very difficult to get a job in one of these type of places. I would kill for a job at one of these firms. It seems like a lot of these plaintiff employment law firms are located in major markets.

[anon168]

Bump. I hear plaintiff side employment law is doing real well in ITE. Any recent grad working at one of these type of shops? How much are you making? And where are you working?

From my understanding, the top plaintiffs shops (almost exclusively plaintiffs...firms like Lieff Cabraser) pay base roughly $30k less than big law, at least to start. Not sure about salary progression.

On the flip side, there seems to be a better chance at partner at many of these places, and equity partners at p-side firms make a killing (more than big law in a good year, and probably on average for the top shops).

You can't use a firm like Lieff Cabraser as a proxy for plaintiff-side only employment firms. It's like comparing apples and apple sauce.

Not using them as a proxy, but more as a ceiling. These firms by their very nature are secretive about how much they pay, so if we can establish a "top" in terms of salary, we can at least start to get a range.

Firms like lieff and Cohen aren't, of course, employment exclusive, but I wasn't sure if poster was asking about pside shops with an employment practice or employment exclusive shops.

Not sure either Lieff or Cohen would represent the ceiling.

Plus ceilings are so variable for plaintiffs firms given that a significant portion of comp is bonus driven that trying to fix a determinate ceiling is nearly impossible.

A better query might be a floor, which for plaintiff side only employment firms would probably be 50k in base salary in most metro markets.

[Anonymous User]

are there differences (in gaining substantive experience, culture, etc) among the top plaintiff's securities litigation firms? the differences among the top biglaw firms are debated ad nauseum on this forum but i can't seem to find similar discussions about plaintiff's firms. i'm currently a junior biglaw associate but am thinking of making the jump in a year or two.

[anon168]

are there differences (in gaining substantive experience, culture, etc) among the top plaintiff's securities litigation firms? the differences among the top biglaw firms are debated ad nauseum on this forum but i can't seem to find similar discussions about plaintiff's firms. i'm currently a junior biglaw associate but am thinking of making the jump in a year or two.

Yes.

[Anonymous User]

are there differences (in gaining substantive experience, culture, etc) among the top plaintiff's securities litigation firms? the differences among the top biglaw firms are debated ad nauseum on this forum but i can't seem to find similar discussions about plaintiff's firms. i'm currently a junior biglaw associate but am thinking of making the jump in a year or two.

Yes.

can you comment on the differences? the only thing i've noticed is that bernstein litowitz seems to be more selective than, say, robbins geller, in the cases it pursues. i'm not sure how that translates to associate experience though.

[anon168]

are there differences (in gaining substantive experience, culture, etc) among the top plaintiff's securities litigation firms? the differences among the top biglaw firms are debated ad nauseum on this forum but i can't seem to find similar discussions about plaintiff's firms. i'm currently a junior biglaw associate but am thinking of making the jump in a year or two.

Yes.

can you comment on the differences? the only thing i've noticed is that bernstein litowitz seems to be more selective than, say, robbins geller, in the cases it pursues. i'm not sure how that translates to associate experience though.

I'm not trying to be a dick about this but you need to phrase your question a little better.

There are a lot of plaintiffs firms and its impossible to make a general statement about their differences without knowing more parameters from you.

It would be like asking what are the cultural and "early responsibility" differences between the V100 firms.

If there are specific firms you are looking at, and you don't want to out yourself, PM me. Otherwise, more detail would be helpful.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know of any good Chicago-area plaintiffs' firms? I looked through the various lists posted on the forum and actually didn't see any (I may have missed one). Or, is there not much in Chicago?

[Anonymous User]

Interviewed with Mr. Dowd during OCI for Robbins Geller and he was a pretty awesome guy. From what I could tell, salary would have been 125k in San Diego but with the possibility of up to 100% bonus so pay may very well be better than most non Boies or WLRK big law... Very few SAs though as the firms are highly deleveraged due to the nature of contingency billing. He definitely walked around like he was in a different class of wealthy from the big law partners at OCI though...

I guess contingency fees on multi billion dollar verdicts like Enron does that for you...

[Anonymous User]

Hey all,

I'll be working for a 25-30 attorney plaintiff's firm this summer in Florida. I'll be happy to report back with my experiences during my time there. Got the job through OCI. Pay is definitely on the low side, but from what I gathered the starting salary is much higher. Also told me I could work as many weeks as I want while I'm there, so I'll be taking advantage of that.

[Anonymous User]

What would you guys consider the top non-securities plaintiffs firms in NY/NJ/Philly? Thinking in the consumer protection/mass tort/civil rights vein.

The ones I know about (although unclear on the reputation of all of them) are:

Seeger Weiss
Lieff Cabraser
Emery Celli
Beldock, Levine
Cohen Milstein

[anon168]

What would you guys consider the top non-securities plaintiffs firms in NY/NJ/Philly? Thinking in the consumer protection/mass tort/civil rights vein.

The ones I know about (although unclear on the reputation of all of them) are:

Seeger Weiss
Lieff Cabraser
Emery Celli
Beldock, Levine
Cohen Milstein

From that list, I would say Seeger Weiss is probably the best of the bunch, esp. for mass torts.

[Anonymous User]

What would you guys consider the top non-securities plaintiffs firms in NY/NJ/Philly? Thinking in the consumer protection/mass tort/civil rights vein.

The ones I know about (although unclear on the reputation of all of them) are:

Seeger Weiss
Lieff Cabraser
Emery Celli
Beldock, Levine
Cohen Milstein

From that list, I would say Seeger Weiss is probably the best of the bunch, esp. for mass torts.

QP here: what are some others you'd add to the list?

[anon168]

What would you guys consider the top non-securities plaintiffs firms in NY/NJ/Philly? Thinking in the consumer protection/mass tort/civil rights vein.

The ones I know about (although unclear on the reputation of all of them) are:

Seeger Weiss
Lieff Cabraser
Emery Celli
Beldock, Levine
Cohen Milstein

From that list, I would say Seeger Weiss is probably the best of the bunch, esp. for mass torts.

QP here: what are some others you'd add to the list?

weitz and luxenberg
Kreindler

[keg411]

What would you guys consider the top non-securities plaintiffs firms in NY/NJ/Philly? Thinking in the consumer protection/mass tort/civil rights vein.

The ones I know about (although unclear on the reputation of all of them) are:

Seeger Weiss
Lieff Cabraser
Emery Celli
Beldock, Levine
Cohen Milstein

From that list, I would say Seeger Weiss is probably the best of the bunch, esp. for mass torts.

In NJ, Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer has a big plaintiffs personal injury/mass tort practice.

[Anonymous User]

Thanks all who have contributed.

Any ideas what kind of grades/performance from HYS needed to get into a firm like Lieff, Robbins?

[Anonymous User]

Thanks all who have contributed.

Any ideas what kind of grades/performance from HYS needed to get into a firm like Lieff, Robbins?

I get the feeling that most of these firms aren't going to hire you right out of school. Either need a clerkship or work-experience.

They're usually much smaller, so they don't have the time or resources to train new grads.

I'm sure there are some exceptions, but if you browse their sites, you won't see many who started right after graduation.

[anon168]

Thanks all who have contributed.

Any ideas what kind of grades/performance from HYS needed to get into a firm like Lieff, Robbins?

Both Lieff and Robbins have summer programs.

[Anonymous User]

Thanks all who have contributed.

Any ideas what kind of grades/performance from HYS needed to get into a firm like Lieff, Robbins?

Both Lieff and Robbins have summer programs.

But do they hire from those summer programs?

For Lieff, not a single New York associate started at the firm the year they graduated. San Francisco seems similar (but I didn't go through all of their bios).

[anon168]

Thanks all who have contributed.

Any ideas what kind of grades/performance from HYS needed to get into a firm like Lieff, Robbins?

Both Lieff and Robbins have summer programs.

But do they hire from those summer programs?

For Lieff, not a single New York associate started at the firm the year they graduated. San Francisco seems similar (but I didn't go through all of their bios).

No idea. Sorry.

I've only seen their names at OCI events/listings, so I know they have a summer program.

Why not just have your CSO make a call and ask?

[Anonymous User]

Thanks all who have contributed.

Any ideas what kind of grades/performance from HYS needed to get into a firm like Lieff, Robbins?

Both Lieff and Robbins have summer programs.

But do they hire from those summer programs?

For Lieff, not a single New York associate started at the firm the year they graduated. San Francisco seems similar (but I didn't go through all of their bios).

No idea. Sorry.

I've only seen their names at OCI events/listings, so I know they have a summer program.

Why not just have your CSO make a call and ask?

QP here: I'm not OP (for this question), just jumping in and asking something he/she may not have asked

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know of any good Chicago-area plaintiffs' firms? I looked through the various lists posted on the forum and actually didn't see any (I may have missed one). Or, is there not much in Chicago?

Missed this post. I'm a little out of touch now, but there are plenty of P-side firms in Chicago. Somebody's got to represent the plaintiff in all those N.D. Ill. cases, right?

For consumer law, look at Edelman Combs and Wexler Wallace -- but there are other firms. I've heard Edelson is up and coming and an exciting place to be if you're young but I can't vouch for that directly. For civil rights the leading firm for years was People's Law Office. They're a legendary shop, but real hard left. I hear now Loevy & Loevy is just as good as People's. Miner Barnhill (Obama's old firm) used to do an interesting mix of voting rights plus general representation for non-profits. Not sure if they still do.

And don't forget the firms based primarily in other cities that also have a Chicago office -- Hagens Berman, Korein Tillery, and Wolf Haldenstein all come to mind in the five seconds I devote to thinking about it.

If you don't have any professors who know their way around Chicago P-side firms, or any other connections, I'd say try your undergrad alumni network. Find one alumnus/a at a P-side firm, get an informational interview, and ask them (among other things) what the best shops are, and why they think so. Thank them excessively for their time of course, they're very busy people...

[Anonymous User]

Thanks for the Chicago help. Do any of those firms do products liability stuff? What's the pay like in Chicago for a place like that?

Incidentally, any tips on getting a position without connections? I went to a small law school where not a lot of people go to the Midwest, and a small undergrad where not a lot of people go to the Midwest. My generic credentials are otherwise great.

[Anonymous User]

I just started at a midsized plaintiff's firm, its one of the biggest players in toxic tort nationwide (especially asbestos cases).

Although the base pay isnt biglaw by any means, the bonuses can be quite substantial (one of the partners has gotten over 100 million for his clients in the past decade or so).

The work is great, I get to do actual substantive work instead of paper/busy work. Although, money is quite important, the attorneys all really want to help out their clients (most of whom are going to die), I think its sort of a self selecting thing, the people who do plaintiff's work all want to work with the "little guy."

Another huge benefit: No one in the office stays past 5 (usually). If you have any questions ask away.

[patrickd139]

Not sure if they've been mentioned yet, but Grais Ellsworth is prosecuting MBS cases in a big way right now. Definitely not your run-of-the-mill plaintiffs' case, but worth a mention.

[beach_terror]

Current associates at top plaintiffs firms - how much are you apart of potential case investigations? If anyone can go over how to bring in potential class suits here, or pm me, that'd be great. Primarily concerned with defects and consumer fraud. Do you just monitor the news and keep an ear out for any potential suits? I'd love to be able to bring in more than I make in the first few years and want to know the best way to do that.