Lateral Move Question Forum

[84651846190]

Except it would be horrible for their reputation.

More horrible than laying off hundreds of first years?

[84651846190]

It simply does not happen, and purported V20 associate is either not being truthful or is just astonishingly clueless / not as involved in recruiting as he makes himself out to be.

I was able to find my post-biglaw employment quite fast, so I did not become intimately informed of all the nuances that people like you, who obviously have obnoxiously confrontational and shitty personalities, must apprise themselves of in order to understand whether it's their shitty personality, shitty credentials or devious former/current employers who are holding back their lateral searches. In your case, the first two categories are the likely culprits.

[romothesavior]

Seriously, watch the tone. You're the only one ITT getting worked up, and the personal attacks need to stop.

[Anonymous User]

I'm a lateral associate. Can tell you guys how this was handled at my current firm:

After I received the offer, I had to provide them with the conflicts and background check information at the same time, including contact information for one reference from my then-current employer. You could check a box to specify the new firm should not contact the current employer until you'd cleared conflicts/the remainder of the background check. I checked this box. The firm eventually told me that they were pleased enough with my other references that they were not going to bother calling my current boss. Had they called my then-current boss, my concern would have been similar to the OP's: my boss had always been very, very pleased with my work but was irate that I was leaving, particularly given upcoming workload. I'm not sure what he would have said if asked to serve as a reference, given his anger.

[Anonymous User]

I'm a lateral associate. Can tell you guys how this was handled at my current firm:

After I received the offer, I had to provide them with the conflicts and background check information at the same time, including contact information for one reference from my then-current employer. You could check a box to specify the new firm should not contact the current employer until you'd cleared conflicts/the remainder of the background check. I checked this box. The firm eventually told me that they were pleased enough with my other references that they were not going to bother calling my current boss. Had they called my then-current boss, my concern would have been similar to the OP's: my boss had always been very, very pleased with my work but was irate that I was leaving, particularly given upcoming workload. I'm not sure what he would have said if asked to serve as a reference, given his anger.

OP here. My issue is that I don't have other work references since I only had a year in between college and law school (during which I was self-employed), and any older jobs are just college jobs that won't remember me. At my firm, almost all of my work has been with this one guy on this one big case, so I'm pretty much stuck with someone who I think will be really set off by me leaving. I may have one back up, but I haven't worked with her anywhere close to as much as the other guy.