Opinions on: Cooley, WSGR, Fenwick, Perkins Coie (Silicon Valley) Forum

[Anonymous User]

As a VC GC:

Fenwick/Cooley: Probably like these guys the best out of all the ones you listed.
WSGR: Inoffensive but annoying to work with.
Perkins: Mixed bag. Some good, some bad.

[Anonymous User]

Thoughts on the smaller players in Palo Alto?

There’s like 20 firms… any specific ones you have in mind

[Anonymous User]

Also a wsgr associate (not any of the ones that posted) and at least if you’re working in PA I think how miserable you are is practice group (and even sub practice group dependent) and I actually think it probably varies person to person.

I’m a pubco/cap markets person and I don’t think I’m particularly miserable nor do I find my work miserable (particularly compared to ECVC work which I very genuinely dislike). Expectations are high at wsgr—many partners are hyper focused on client service and we have a lot of demanding clients, but I’ve never had any issues with my coworkers and find many of them to be extremely bright and motivated. Anecdotally, we’ve had people go in house and be surprised at how little their outside counsel did by comparison to wsgr.

Again, very team dependent and I did consider lateraling earlier this year (interviewed and had offers—was basically just a burnout situation) but ultimately turned the offers down because I couldn’t justify leaving the team where I feel respected and valued for the unknown, but maybe the grass would have been greener. Who knows lol.

Idk, to me all of cooley/fenwick/wsgr are essentially the same idea so go with the one you like best and know you’ll get portable experience for either lateraling to another of the three or going in house pretty quickly (I’m a rising third year, so had multiple lateral offers as barely a second year, realize it’s a different market but still)

[Anonymous User]

Also a wsgr associate (not any of the ones that posted) and at least if you’re working in PA I think how miserable you are is practice group (and even sub practice group dependent) and I actually think it probably varies person to person.

I’m a pubco/cap markets person and I don’t think I’m particularly miserable nor do I find my work miserable (particularly compared to ECVC work which I very genuinely dislike). Expectations are high at wsgr—many partners are hyper focused on client service and we have a lot of demanding clients, but I’ve never had any issues with my coworkers and find many of them to be extremely bright and motivated. Anecdotally, we’ve had people go in house and be surprised at how little their outside counsel did by comparison to wsgr.

Again, very team dependent and I did consider lateraling earlier this year (interviewed and had offers—was basically just a burnout situation) but ultimately turned the offers down because I couldn’t justify leaving the team where I feel respected and valued for the unknown, but maybe the grass would have been greener. Who knows lol.

Idk, to me all of cooley/fenwick/wsgr are essentially the same idea so go with the one you like best and know you’ll get portable experience for either lateraling to another of the three or going in house pretty quickly (I’m a rising third year, so had multiple lateral offers as barely a second year, realize it’s a different market but still)

So you were burnt out and considered lateraling but like it? Lol.

[Anonymous User]

Not sure about Perkins Palo Alto, but Perkins SF is a dumpster fire culture wise. Super fake friendly and then miserable through and through in practice. They had an Asian associate exodus in the past few years for various reasons.

[Anonymous User]

Not sure about Perkins Palo Alto, but Perkins SF is a dumpster fire culture wise. Super fake friendly and then miserable through and through in practice. They had an Asian associate exodus in the past few years for various reasons.

Their screener with me was so weird. Spent >1/2 the interview asking how I would help their DEI efforts (I'm an incredibly generic white guy). Did not want (or get) a cb after that.

[Anonymous User]

Also a wsgr associate (not any of the ones that posted) and at least if you’re working in PA I think how miserable you are is practice group (and even sub practice group dependent) and I actually think it probably varies person to person.

I’m a pubco/cap markets person and I don’t think I’m particularly miserable nor do I find my work miserable (particularly compared to ECVC work which I very genuinely dislike). Expectations are high at wsgr—many partners are hyper focused on client service and we have a lot of demanding clients, but I’ve never had any issues with my coworkers and find many of them to be extremely bright and motivated. Anecdotally, we’ve had people go in house and be surprised at how little their outside counsel did by comparison to wsgr.

Again, very team dependent and I did consider lateraling earlier this year (interviewed and had offers—was basically just a burnout situation) but ultimately turned the offers down because I couldn’t justify leaving the team where I feel respected and valued for the unknown, but maybe the grass would have been greener. Who knows lol.

Idk, to me all of cooley/fenwick/wsgr are essentially the same idea so go with the one you like best and know you’ll get portable experience for either lateraling to another of the three or going in house pretty quickly (I’m a rising third year, so had multiple lateral offers as barely a second year, realize it’s a different market but still)

So you were burnt out and considered lateraling but like it? Lol.

Not quoted anon but every cap market associate in every firm was burnt out in the last two years

[Anonymous User]

Also a wsgr associate (not any of the ones that posted) and at least if you’re working in PA I think how miserable you are is practice group (and even sub practice group dependent) and I actually think it probably varies person to person.

I’m a pubco/cap markets person and I don’t think I’m particularly miserable nor do I find my work miserable (particularly compared to ECVC work which I very genuinely dislike). Expectations are high at wsgr—many partners are hyper focused on client service and we have a lot of demanding clients, but I’ve never had any issues with my coworkers and find many of them to be extremely bright and motivated. Anecdotally, we’ve had people go in house and be surprised at how little their outside counsel did by comparison to wsgr.

Again, very team dependent and I did consider lateraling earlier this year (interviewed and had offers—was basically just a burnout situation) but ultimately turned the offers down because I couldn’t justify leaving the team where I feel respected and valued for the unknown, but maybe the grass would have been greener. Who knows lol.

Idk, to me all of cooley/fenwick/wsgr are essentially the same idea so go with the one you like best and know you’ll get portable experience for either lateraling to another of the three or going in house pretty quickly (I’m a rising third year, so had multiple lateral offers as barely a second year, realize it’s a different market but still)

So you were burnt out and considered lateraling but like it? Lol.

Not quoted anon but every cap market associate in every firm was burnt out in the last two years

I am the quoted anon and agree with the above anon--I basically interviewed wondering if the grass is greener and realized that given the state of the industry, I was already standing on the greenest grass (at least out of the other firms I talked to--sure, there may be better places, I certainly didn't interview at the entire V50).

Also almost took an offer to go to hyper-local small law because I thought biglaw wasn't for me as a result of those interviews (seriously, some of the hours other firms' associates were quoting as "normal" were terrifying), then work slowed down (both because of the economy and because I was honest and frank with staffing/other associates I work for about being burned out, who then helped me strategize how to fix my situation) and I was able to breathe and overcome the burnout after a few months. Also, to be clear, for the haters and skeptics, I billed the most out of anyone my class year in 2021 (confirmed by staffing and more than one partner) so it's not like I'm complaining about 1950 hours here, but I was also an outlier case for the firm.

Now I actually like work more than ever (despite being really busy again) and feel really comfortable knowing that my team will go to bat/cover for me when things get really out of control. I also really appreciate the ability to be honest about my workload, even with senior partners, who hear me and work to get additional help when it's needed, which is to say, some of the underlying reasons I interviewed elsewhere was my own discomfort with actually admitting I needed help/support rather than the firm itself.

That said, I'm not high on the kool aid or anything, it's still a biglaw firm in all its glory and some partners are pretty dreadful to work for. You certainly have to advocate for yourself, but if you do, the firm does tend to accommodate.

[Anonymous User]

Anon because WSGR affiliated. Don’t like the firm. Very group dependent and toxic. Hard to get out of a group once you’re in it. Would hands down consider friendlier places like Cooley/Fenwick prior to WSGR.

[Anonymous User]

I'm a junior at Perkins, but in a different California office. Like it a lot. Definitely feels more chill than the other firms my friends are at — you're still working a lot but partners and seniors try to be pretty respectful re: after-hours work, weekend work, personal plans, etc. A big thing that convinced me to join was how it seemed like associates and partners could speak passionately about their hobbies outside of work. Culture was also a good fit for me as someone a bit nerdier that didn't fit well with the fratty firms. Agree with the other commenter that you get more substantive work early since the teams are staffed much leaner, but can't speak to the sophistication of the work because I haven't worked elsewhere. Overall no regrets.

[Anonymous User]

I’m at Perkins and I really really like it as far as biglaw goes (and I would recommend the firm to almost anyone), but I’ve also heard negative things about the SF office. Apparently some of the toxic partners left for MoFo so maybe it has gotten better. I don’t work with or know anyone there so I’m not sure.

[Anonymous User]

Anon bc also a Fenwick associate. Your questions are prob office specific - I like my team & who I’ve interacted with and the overall firm culture. We don’t have as many cool perks like other firms with access to boxes at games but pros outweigh the cons