Attorneys of Kirkland. Talk to incoming 2L SAs about your experience at the firm. Forum

[Anonymous User]

It's also not really about the email anymore. It's that KE ppl itt don't think there's anything wrong with the email. Call it Stockholm, call it awareness of the tradeoff, call it whatever you want. There's a difference in culture. So I think this thread is pretty useful for 2Ls to decide. They might not have a problem with it either, so it might be a good fit! From the KE standpoint, this filtering process may even be a positive thing.

I'm at KE and me and my (associate) work friends shit talked that email relentlessly when it was on ATL. I'm not in Houston nor in Calder's group, but his email would be an instant delete if for some reason he reached out to pitch me on a case. The benefits of the free market system.

The Houston office has a reputation in the firm and we are very happy that the Houston culture is really not what we have in my office. No need for you to read a few randos on a message board and decide that they speak for the firm as a whole

[Anonymous User]

Yeah, I work at K&E and think the Calder email is egregious. I’m not in that office, but I won’t play that down.

[Anonymous User]

It's also not really about the email anymore. It's that KE ppl itt don't think there's anything wrong with the email. Call it Stockholm, call it awareness of the tradeoff, call it whatever you want. There's a difference in culture. So I think this thread is pretty useful for 2Ls to decide. They might not have a problem with it either, so it might be a good fit! From the KE standpoint, this filtering process may even be a positive thing.

LOL ok. If you can't brush off an email like that then you're not long for the real world.

[Anonymous User]

LOL ok. If you can't brush off an email like that then you're not long for the real world.

That email would have gotten someone put on probation or fired in my pre-law school career.

I am sorry that your reality is apparently nasty and borderline emotionally abusive.

[Anonymous User]

Yeah, I work at K&E and think the Calder email is egregious. I’m not in that office, but I won’t play that down.

It is important to note who didn't find the email egregious - the K&E Executive Committee.

That, more than anything else, is telling. The fact that you would let such a person represent your firm is something that DPW, Cravath, etc. would never do.

[Anonymous User]

Yeah, I work at K&E and think the Calder email is egregious. I’m not in that office, but I won’t play that down.

It is important to note who didn't find the email egregious - the K&E Executive Committee.

That, more than anything else, is telling. The fact that you would let such a person represent your firm is something that DPW, Cravath, etc. would never do.

I mean Kirkland Houston is the firm's most profitable office amirite (it was last time I checked a few years ago, anyone know if it still is?)? Seems like the Executive Committee is happy to keep that gravy train going.

[Anonymous User]

Which way western man! Do the comments here not represent the greater Kirkland community, or are the appalled non Kirkland people a bunch of snowflakes?

[Anonymous User]

LOL ok. If you can't brush off an email like that then you're not long for the real world.

That email would have gotten someone put on probation or fired in my pre-law school career.

I am sorry that your reality is apparently nasty and borderline emotionally abusive.

It's stunning to me how many KJDs are utterly clueless about the actual real world. No, this industry is not normal.

[Anonymous User]

I agree with this for the firm writ large (there are some great teams within it), but I found my prior firms even more frustrating because they pretended that they were invested in training and mentoring associates and treating associates like they were valued team members when all interactions and firm actions completely belied that. The prior firms had emails or department calls like the Calder one, but they just never leaked.

This is called Stockholm Syndrome. We both have it. Believe it or not there are firms out there--so I've been told--where partners actually care about their associates and are invested in training and mentoring and don't view us simply as fungible cogs for their next Porsche payment. Meaning they're neither passive aggressive psychopaths nor explicit psychopaths. Let's do better.

Oh, I agree with your sentiment. I just tend to see people avoid K&E only to go to a marginally less bad peer because it’s a V10/15/20. There’s no agreement on what firms are good for treating associates with dignity, so I think you have to be very intentional and seek out associates who’ve left to get the real scoop.

K&E Houston anon. I agree, and this is part of the point I was trying to make above. I don’t really care about some fake PR/HR wrapping paper, I care about how the firm actually behaves. The fact that K&E is more open about being “business-like” and calculating in its decisions does not mean that its actions are different than its peers or that its culture is any worse. If anything, I’d argue that the honesty is refreshing.

Would I rather be at a firm where the partners were truly sweet and kind and selfless and frequently sacrificed their own interests to benefit the associates (beyond what is required to increase productivity and decrease turnover)? Where they made decisions altruistically rather than as a business calculation? Sure. But that sort of firm doesn’t seem to actually exist, at least not anywhere among K&E’s peers.

If that’s going to be my actual, real life situation at every firm, I’d prefer not to have the partners lie and bullshit about it, then throw me under the bus when it’s to their advantage. Look at all the firms that talk a big game and then do layoffs or cut salaries the moment their profits are threatened in a downturn.

This really misses the point that there is a fundamental difference between a firm like DPW and between KW. Does DPW have many utterly miserable, overweight, thrice divorced partners happy to turn associates into ashen versions of themselves sure? But no matter how miserable these partners might be, they would still have the class not to think of their associates as chattel to be lit on fire and disposed of. I don't think a single DPW partner would ever send an email like the one Calder did, and I fully expect that a DPW partner doing so would be shown the door. There is class, and then there is KE, the closest thing to modern day dungeon.

It's not that other law firms are warm, fuzzy and happy places, its that KE has totally done away with the idea that there is any partnership model undergirding the business, or that associates are valued professionals entitled to be treated with a modicum of respect. KE associates are now treated like the equivalent of $5/hour call center workers outsourced to Costa Rica.

You can deduce all that from one email?

Did I miss the apology and mea culpa from KE, along with the announcement that Mr. Calder is stepping away from his role on the Executive Committee and as partner-in-charge of the Houston office?

Seems like the opposite is true, and KE is happy to embrace the in-your-face nastiness and the people that attracts. The QE of corporate law.

Get a grip dude. What firm with any sense would do all that over a (barely) insensitive email? You are embarrassing yourself by even suggesting this crap.

[Anonymous User]

The resident DPW troll is out of control here.

[Anonymous User]

The resident DPW troll is out of control here.

It comes down to a question of what you value. Is it money above all else, or do you value the culture of the firm, the reputation of your partners and the way you are perceived by your colleagues more than a few extra dollars?

Kirkland is clear that they just care about the cash, and nothing else matters. Other firms have a different calculus. We don't see mortifying emails like this from DPW or Wachtell partners. Kirkland is uniquely awful in this regard, even compared to other similarly positioned biglaw firms.

[Anonymous User]

Work at V20, neither DPW nor KE. Cutting through all the bullshit and analysis, the Calder email just seems kind of mean? Maybe I don't live in the real world but I'm actually not at all accustomed to really anyone being that outwardly dickish in a professional setting. I've had partners upset with me, but its always "Is everything ok? You need to [do better/pay more attention etc.]" and never smarm like "the gravy train" comment.

[Anonymous User]

Which way western man! Do the comments here not represent the greater Kirkland community, or are the appalled non Kirkland people a bunch of snowflakes?

Well Kirkland does have like 3000 lawyers across 10 domestic offices, so I’m not sure any individual lawyer or small group of them can really represent “the greater Kirkland community.” Which is also why a lot of the commentary around culture is silly because it’s just so big and varies so much by office, practice, and partner. Especially considering how many of them are laterals that bring over whatever culture was at their last firm.

[Anonymous User]

Wow, I have no skin in this game, but this Andrew Calder guy based on that email sounds like a total asshole. Probably wants to do the same hazing he had to go through to become a partner himself, just an outdated view on so many things.
[/quote]

Is this what people consider to be tough partners in BigLaw? This seems pretty reasonable. I always thought people meant getting staplers thrown at them or something...
[/quote]

if your standard for tough is thrown staplers then your standard is way too high

[LBJ's Hair]

email was disrespectful, and we know that b/c if an associate sent him an email w/ that tone he would lose his shit.

not the same as throwing a stapler, not gonna call it "abuse" or w/e, but wouldn't want to work w/ someone who types that up and thinks "yeah this is something I should send to a bunch of people making 1/50 what I make"

/thread

[Anonymous User]

Very curious. I'm going to be a transactional attorney. I want the good and the bad.

You will learn a lot in a short period of time.

You will be worked very hard.

There's clearly no better place to do corporate in Chicago--not even really debatable. But you're going to feel like a very tiny cog in a giant impersonal machine, because you basically are.

Thanks for the info. If you wouldn't mind a few more questions, I'm curious about your experience pertaining to the following:

1. What is your experience with partners? I understand that Kirkland is a huge machine and things can feel impersonal. Have you had any uncomfortable situations with partners thus far?

2. Do you find that it's relatively easy to be able to say "no" to added work when you have too much on your plate?

3. What does your typical schedule look like?

4. Are you comfortable sharing your practice group? I understand that this might be too specific or might limit the level of detail you provide in answering other questions, so please answer only if you think it makes sense to.

5. What is something you wish you knew before joining? If you have friends at other offices, what are some of the perks at Kirkland that other firms don't have, and what are maybe some of the down sides?

And a general question, what level associate are you?

Anyone else in Kirkland Corporate, please feel free to respond! Thank you all.

To bring this thread back to where it started, anon corporate midlevel in HU here to give you my thoughts based on my own personal experience.

(1) The partners at K&E that I’ve worked with are by and large really great people. I know they’d have by back if I needed it and they go out of their way to make me feel like a valued part of the team and the office as a whole. KE has a younger/cooler vibe generally, and I like that because the partners feel more like peers or friends that I can relax and have fun with, rather than feel intimidated by or scared of or just otherwise not relate to on any level. Now there are obviously partners that are less warm or a bit tougher to work with, but because of the free market system you can choose to work solely with those that you want to. I’ve never personally had a negative experience with any partner at KE, and even those that are a bit tougher to work with (whether that be because they’re disorganized, set unnecessary deadlines or didn’t try and get to know me at a personal level or whatever) are really smart and good at their job and generally fine to work with. Kirkland is a big firm and when things get going fast, it can sometimes feel a bit impersonal (but that’s just the nature of the beast at times), but the majority of the time I do feel like I’m appreciated and that the partners do genuinely care about my well-being and happiness and want to take the time to teach me and explain things to me.

(2) it’s incredibly easy to say no. I’ve never received pushback when I’ve said no to a new deal, and I’ve even turned down work when I’m billing low (think <25 hours a week) whether that be because I don’t want to do that particular type of deal or work with that team, I’m holding out for something better or something that might come back alive or maybe I just need some time to take a breather after a busy spell. The free market system is the best thing about KE IMO — it’s so much easier to care and want to do good work when it’s something you chose to do and wanted to do vs. something that was forced on you that you didn’t have any desire to do in the first place.

(3) typical day is the toughest to answer. No day is the same and it’s very difficult to try and predict what each day is going to look like. Being in a corp transactional practice working with the types of clients KE works with, things can go from zero to 100 real quick. It’s fast paced which is fun but it does suck when you’re a junior and don’t have much insight into what’s going on in the background. It’s unpredictable, but you’ll find that with most big law corporate practices.

(4) corp/transactional

(5) there’s not much I wish I knew that I didn’t when I started. My time at Kirkland has actually far exceeded my expectations. One thing I wish I knew (or had believed when people said this) was that no one expects you to know absolutely anything at all when you start. It can be intimidating starting work with so many other really smart people in your class but it’s nice because with transactional practice, everyone is essentially starting from the exact same place and whether you succeed and what experience you get out of it is truly 100% up to you and how much you want to make of it. Kirkland is an incredible place to start out because you learn so much so fast and are given responsibility much earlier than you would somewhere else since KE has much less of a hierarchical type vibe than other places and so if you want to learn and get experience, I can’t think of a better place to be. Also, from reading online about Kirkland, I thought I was going to be stepping into some kind of hunger games version of law school where my peers were all just gunning to be the best and were competitive as hell, but that could not be farther from what my experience has actually been. Everyone in my class was super friendly and drama free, we have a lot of fun together and there was zero competition — everyone just kind of did their own thing and fell into their own sort of groove and has their own preferred teams/people to work with so it really couldn’t be less competitive than it is.

[anon24601]

FWIW I interviewed with Kirkland's trademark lit group a while back and heard some bad stories from a current associate (who could have just been having a bad day i guess). Associates often bill 250-300 hour weeks and are still assigned more work and saying "no" or asking for lighter workload is frowned upon or overruled. Associates not really allowed to work outside the practice group and are miserable, strung out, and actively trying to leave. SPs are indifferent to associate wellbeing and are sweet at first but apparently extremely difficult to work with. Elevation to SP from NSP is even more impossible than it is at K&E generally b/c group is dominated by one partner who has a stranglehold over all the business and wants to keep it that way. This is all hearsay but wanted to pass it on and maybe save a life.

Considering there are only 168 hours in a week, that really is brutal

Derp, I meant months.

[thisismytlsuername]

Very curious. I'm going to be a transactional attorney. I want the good and the bad.

You will learn a lot in a short period of time.

You will be worked very hard.

There's clearly no better place to do corporate in Chicago--not even really debatable. But you're going to feel like a very tiny cog in a giant impersonal machine, because you basically are.

Thanks for the info. If you wouldn't mind a few more questions, I'm curious about your experience pertaining to the following:

1. What is your experience with partners? I understand that Kirkland is a huge machine and things can feel impersonal. Have you had any uncomfortable situations with partners thus far?

2. Do you find that it's relatively easy to be able to say "no" to added work when you have too much on your plate?

3. What does your typical schedule look like?

4. Are you comfortable sharing your practice group? I understand that this might be too specific or might limit the level of detail you provide in answering other questions, so please answer only if you think it makes sense to.

5. What is something you wish you knew before joining? If you have friends at other offices, what are some of the perks at Kirkland that other firms don't have, and what are maybe some of the down sides?

And a general question, what level associate are you?

Anyone else in Kirkland Corporate, please feel free to respond! Thank you all.

To bring this thread back to where it started, anon corporate midlevel in HU here to give you my thoughts based on my own personal experience.

(1) The partners at K&E that I’ve worked with are by and large really great people. I know they’d have by back if I needed it and they go out of their way to make me feel like a valued part of the team and the office as a whole. KE has a younger/cooler vibe generally, and I like that because the partners feel more like peers or friends that I can relax and have fun with, rather than feel intimidated by or scared of or just otherwise not relate to on any level. Now there are obviously partners that are less warm or a bit tougher to work with, but because of the free market system you can choose to work solely with those that you want to. I’ve never personally had a negative experience with any partner at KE, and even those that are a bit tougher to work with (whether that be because they’re disorganized, set unnecessary deadlines or didn’t try and get to know me at a personal level or whatever) are really smart and good at their job and generally fine to work with. Kirkland is a big firm and when things get going fast, it can sometimes feel a bit impersonal (but that’s just the nature of the beast at times), but the majority of the time I do feel like I’m appreciated and that the partners do genuinely care about my well-being and happiness and want to take the time to teach me and explain things to me.

(2) it’s incredibly easy to say no. I’ve never received pushback when I’ve said no to a new deal, and I’ve even turned down work when I’m billing low (think <25 hours a week) whether that be because I don’t want to do that particular type of deal or work with that team, I’m holding out for something better or something that might come back alive or maybe I just need some time to take a breather after a busy spell. The free market system is the best thing about KE IMO — it’s so much easier to care and want to do good work when it’s something you chose to do and wanted to do vs. something that was forced on you that you didn’t have any desire to do in the first place.

(3) typical day is the toughest to answer. No day is the same and it’s very difficult to try and predict what each day is going to look like. Being in a corp transactional practice working with the types of clients KE works with, things can go from zero to 100 real quick. It’s fast paced which is fun but it does suck when you’re a junior and don’t have much insight into what’s going on in the background. It’s unpredictable, but you’ll find that with most big law corporate practices.

(4) corp/transactional

(5) there’s not much I wish I knew that I didn’t when I started. My time at Kirkland has actually far exceeded my expectations. One thing I wish I knew (or had believed when people said this) was that no one expects you to know absolutely anything at all when you start. It can be intimidating starting work with so many other really smart people in your class but it’s nice because with transactional practice, everyone is essentially starting from the exact same place and whether you succeed and what experience you get out of it is truly 100% up to you and how much you want to make of it. Kirkland is an incredible place to start out because you learn so much so fast and are given responsibility much earlier than you would somewhere else since KE has much less of a hierarchical type vibe than other places and so if you want to learn and get experience, I can’t think of a better place to be. Also, from reading online about Kirkland, I thought I was going to be stepping into some kind of hunger games version of law school where my peers were all just gunning to be the best and were competitive as hell, but that could not be farther from what my experience has actually been. Everyone in my class was super friendly and drama free, we have a lot of fun together and there was zero competition — everyone just kind of did their own thing and fell into their own sort of groove and has their own preferred teams/people to work with so it really couldn’t be less competitive than it is.

I prefer the intra-Kirkland bickering to this bs marketing fluff tbh.

[Anonymous User]

Very curious. I'm going to be a transactional attorney. I want the good and the bad.

You will learn a lot in a short period of time.

You will be worked very hard.

There's clearly no better place to do corporate in Chicago--not even really debatable. But you're going to feel like a very tiny cog in a giant impersonal machine, because you basically are.

Thanks for the info. If you wouldn't mind a few more questions, I'm curious about your experience pertaining to the following:

1. What is your experience with partners? I understand that Kirkland is a huge machine and things can feel impersonal. Have you had any uncomfortable situations with partners thus far?

2. Do you find that it's relatively easy to be able to say "no" to added work when you have too much on your plate?

3. What does your typical schedule look like?

4. Are you comfortable sharing your practice group? I understand that this might be too specific or might limit the level of detail you provide in answering other questions, so please answer only if you think it makes sense to.

5. What is something you wish you knew before joining? If you have friends at other offices, what are some of the perks at Kirkland that other firms don't have, and what are maybe some of the down sides?

And a general question, what level associate are you?

Anyone else in Kirkland Corporate, please feel free to respond! Thank you all.

To bring this thread back to where it started, anon corporate midlevel in HU here to give you my thoughts based on my own personal experience.

(1) The partners at K&E that I’ve worked with are by and large really great people. I know they’d have by back if I needed it and they go out of their way to make me feel like a valued part of the team and the office as a whole. KE has a younger/cooler vibe generally, and I like that because the partners feel more like peers or friends that I can relax and have fun with, rather than feel intimidated by or scared of or just otherwise not relate to on any level. Now there are obviously partners that are less warm or a bit tougher to work with, but because of the free market system you can choose to work solely with those that you want to. I’ve never personally had a negative experience with any partner at KE, and even those that are a bit tougher to work with (whether that be because they’re disorganized, set unnecessary deadlines or didn’t try and get to know me at a personal level or whatever) are really smart and good at their job and generally fine to work with. Kirkland is a big firm and when things get going fast, it can sometimes feel a bit impersonal (but that’s just the nature of the beast at times), but the majority of the time I do feel like I’m appreciated and that the partners do genuinely care about my well-being and happiness and want to take the time to teach me and explain things to me.

(2) it’s incredibly easy to say no. I’ve never received pushback when I’ve said no to a new deal, and I’ve even turned down work when I’m billing low (think <25 hours a week) whether that be because I don’t want to do that particular type of deal or work with that team, I’m holding out for something better or something that might come back alive or maybe I just need some time to take a breather after a busy spell. The free market system is the best thing about KE IMO — it’s so much easier to care and want to do good work when it’s something you chose to do and wanted to do vs. something that was forced on you that you didn’t have any desire to do in the first place.

(3) typical day is the toughest to answer. No day is the same and it’s very difficult to try and predict what each day is going to look like. Being in a corp transactional practice working with the types of clients KE works with, things can go from zero to 100 real quick. It’s fast paced which is fun but it does suck when you’re a junior and don’t have much insight into what’s going on in the background. It’s unpredictable, but you’ll find that with most big law corporate practices.

(4) corp/transactional

(5) there’s not much I wish I knew that I didn’t when I started. My time at Kirkland has actually far exceeded my expectations. One thing I wish I knew (or had believed when people said this) was that no one expects you to know absolutely anything at all when you start. It can be intimidating starting work with so many other really smart people in your class but it’s nice because with transactional practice, everyone is essentially starting from the exact same place and whether you succeed and what experience you get out of it is truly 100% up to you and how much you want to make of it. Kirkland is an incredible place to start out because you learn so much so fast and are given responsibility much earlier than you would somewhere else since KE has much less of a hierarchical type vibe than other places and so if you want to learn and get experience, I can’t think of a better place to be. Also, from reading online about Kirkland, I thought I was going to be stepping into some kind of hunger games version of law school where my peers were all just gunning to be the best and were competitive as hell, but that could not be farther from what my experience has actually been. Everyone in my class was super friendly and drama free, we have a lot of fun together and there was zero competition — everyone just kind of did their own thing and fell into their own sort of groove and has their own preferred teams/people to work with so it really couldn’t be less competitive than it is.

This post is total horseshit, is full of mistruths, and literally reads like it was written by someone in the firm’s PR / Coms department.

[Anonymous User]

Legit curious if it's a troll post or if someone from PR actually posted in here

[Anonymous User]

Very curious. I'm going to be a transactional attorney. I want the good and the bad.

You will learn a lot in a short period of time.

You will be worked very hard.

There's clearly no better place to do corporate in Chicago--not even really debatable. But you're going to feel like a very tiny cog in a giant impersonal machine, because you basically are.

Thanks for the info. If you wouldn't mind a few more questions, I'm curious about your experience pertaining to the following:

1. What is your experience with partners? I understand that Kirkland is a huge machine and things can feel impersonal. Have you had any uncomfortable situations with partners thus far?

2. Do you find that it's relatively easy to be able to say "no" to added work when you have too much on your plate?

3. What does your typical schedule look like?

4. Are you comfortable sharing your practice group? I understand that this might be too specific or might limit the level of detail you provide in answering other questions, so please answer only if you think it makes sense to.

5. What is something you wish you knew before joining? If you have friends at other offices, what are some of the perks at Kirkland that other firms don't have, and what are maybe some of the down sides?

And a general question, what level associate are you?

Anyone else in Kirkland Corporate, please feel free to respond! Thank you all.

To bring this thread back to where it started, anon corporate midlevel in HU here to give you my thoughts based on my own personal experience.

(1) The partners at K&E that I’ve worked with are by and large really great people. I know they’d have by back if I needed it and they go out of their way to make me feel like a valued part of the team and the office as a whole. KE has a younger/cooler vibe generally, and I like that because the partners feel more like peers or friends that I can relax and have fun with, rather than feel intimidated by or scared of or just otherwise not relate to on any level. Now there are obviously partners that are less warm or a bit tougher to work with, but because of the free market system you can choose to work solely with those that you want to. I’ve never personally had a negative experience with any partner at KE, and even those that are a bit tougher to work with (whether that be because they’re disorganized, set unnecessary deadlines or didn’t try and get to know me at a personal level or whatever) are really smart and good at their job and generally fine to work with. Kirkland is a big firm and when things get going fast, it can sometimes feel a bit impersonal (but that’s just the nature of the beast at times), but the majority of the time I do feel like I’m appreciated and that the partners do genuinely care about my well-being and happiness and want to take the time to teach me and explain things to me.

(2) it’s incredibly easy to say no. I’ve never received pushback when I’ve said no to a new deal, and I’ve even turned down work when I’m billing low (think <25 hours a week) whether that be because I don’t want to do that particular type of deal or work with that team, I’m holding out for something better or something that might come back alive or maybe I just need some time to take a breather after a busy spell. The free market system is the best thing about KE IMO — it’s so much easier to care and want to do good work when it’s something you chose to do and wanted to do vs. something that was forced on you that you didn’t have any desire to do in the first place.

(3) typical day is the toughest to answer. No day is the same and it’s very difficult to try and predict what each day is going to look like. Being in a corp transactional practice working with the types of clients KE works with, things can go from zero to 100 real quick. It’s fast paced which is fun but it does suck when you’re a junior and don’t have much insight into what’s going on in the background. It’s unpredictable, but you’ll find that with most big law corporate practices.

(4) corp/transactional

(5) there’s not much I wish I knew that I didn’t when I started. My time at Kirkland has actually far exceeded my expectations. One thing I wish I knew (or had believed when people said this) was that no one expects you to know absolutely anything at all when you start. It can be intimidating starting work with so many other really smart people in your class but it’s nice because with transactional practice, everyone is essentially starting from the exact same place and whether you succeed and what experience you get out of it is truly 100% up to you and how much you want to make of it. Kirkland is an incredible place to start out because you learn so much so fast and are given responsibility much earlier than you would somewhere else since KE has much less of a hierarchical type vibe than other places and so if you want to learn and get experience, I can’t think of a better place to be. Also, from reading online about Kirkland, I thought I was going to be stepping into some kind of hunger games version of law school where my peers were all just gunning to be the best and were competitive as hell, but that could not be farther from what my experience has actually been. Everyone in my class was super friendly and drama free, we have a lot of fun together and there was zero competition — everyone just kind of did their own thing and fell into their own sort of groove and has their own preferred teams/people to work with so it really couldn’t be less competitive than it is.

This post is total horseshit, is full of mistruths, and literally reads like it was written by someone in the firm’s PR / Coms department.

I mean. Or it's someone that had a different experience than you or the people you know? Love how logical reasoning stops being a concept after the LSAT for some of you. This person has an experience different than mine --> IT'S A LIE. Mistruths.

[Anonymous User]

I've had a great experience at K&E. 9 years+ (was at another firm before lateraling) and now a share partner (transactional). I've always been good at managing my schedule (i've averaged around 2000-2100 hours/year during my career, except with this past year being a bit ridiculous and definitely an outlier). I've had, and continue to have, great mentors who've supported me the whole way because they want to see me succeed (and of course also because I do the work for them). I've always been given a ton of responsibility and independence, which I've developed over the years into my own client base. I try my best to be fair with my associates and honest in my feedback. They are valuable members of my team and I cannot do my job without them - thus I afford them the respect they deserve. I don't like giving weekend work unless absolutely necessary because I enjoy my weekends as well. I've pulled almost no true all-nighters during my entire time here and I will never respond to emails past midnight because I am asleep and don't wake up until 7:30am.

None of this is PR spin and all of it is 100% true for me. I can verify my identity if helpful. Every person's experience can and will vary, but K&E has been great for me and I wouldn't work at any other law firm.

[Anonymous User]

I've had a great experience at K&E. 9 years+ (was at another firm before lateraling) and now a share partner (transactional). I've always been good at managing my schedule (i've averaged around 2000-2100 hours/year during my career, except with this past year being a bit ridiculous and definitely an outlier). I've had, and continue to have, great mentors who've supported me the whole way because they want to see me succeed (and of course also because I do the work for them). I've always been given a ton of responsibility and independence, which I've developed over the years into my own client base. I try my best to be fair with my associates and honest in my feedback. They are valuable members of my team and I cannot do my job without them - thus I afford them the respect they deserve. I don't like giving weekend work unless absolutely necessary because I enjoy my weekends as well. I've pulled almost no true all-nighters during my entire time here and I will never respond to emails past midnight because I am asleep and don't wake up until 7:30am.

None of this is PR spin and all of it is 100% true for me. I can verify my identity if helpful. Every person's experience can and will vary, but K&E has been great for me and I wouldn't work at any other law firm.

I find this a lot more believable (if likely atypical experience) than the previous rainbow unicorn farts fanfic.

[Anonymous User]

I've had a great experience at K&E. 9 years+ (was at another firm before lateraling) and now a share partner (transactional). I've always been good at managing my schedule (i've averaged around 2000-2100 hours/year during my career, except with this past year being a bit ridiculous and definitely an outlier). I've had, and continue to have, great mentors who've supported me the whole way because they want to see me succeed (and of course also because I do the work for them). I've always been given a ton of responsibility and independence, which I've developed over the years into my own client base. I try my best to be fair with my associates and honest in my feedback. They are valuable members of my team and I cannot do my job without them - thus I afford them the respect they deserve. I don't like giving weekend work unless absolutely necessary because I enjoy my weekends as well. I've pulled almost no true all-nighters during my entire time here and I will never respond to emails past midnight because I am asleep and don't wake up until 7:30am.

None of this is PR spin and all of it is 100% true for me. I can verify my identity if helpful. Every person's experience can and will vary, but K&E has been great for me and I wouldn't work at any other law firm.

I find this a lot more believable (if likely atypical experience) than the previous rainbow unicorn farts fanfic.

Why? Because they provided less detail? You guys are absolute clowns. I have no dog in the fight and don't care about KE. I've criticized KE associates for being too thin skinned (and I still think they can be). But this type of shit proves their point. If you have a concrete disagreement with what a KE associate is saying, go at it. But to blindly attack KE associates for having a positive experience? How pathetic. The idea is that none of the thousands of KE associates can have a glowing review of their experience thus far?

Your obsession with KE is unhealthy if you can't keep yourself from interjecting with your take in an inherently subjective topic.

[Anonymous User]

I've had a great experience at K&E. 9 years+ (was at another firm before lateraling) and now a share partner (transactional). I've always been good at managing my schedule (i've averaged around 2000-2100 hours/year during my career, except with this past year being a bit ridiculous and definitely an outlier). I've had, and continue to have, great mentors who've supported me the whole way because they want to see me succeed (and of course also because I do the work for them). I've always been given a ton of responsibility and independence, which I've developed over the years into my own client base. I try my best to be fair with my associates and honest in my feedback. They are valuable members of my team and I cannot do my job without them - thus I afford them the respect they deserve. I don't like giving weekend work unless absolutely necessary because I enjoy my weekends as well. I've pulled almost no true all-nighters during my entire time here and I will never respond to emails past midnight because I am asleep and don't wake up until 7:30am.

None of this is PR spin and all of it is 100% true for me. I can verify my identity if helpful. Every person's experience can and will vary, but K&E has been great for me and I wouldn't work at any other law firm.

I find this a lot more believable (if likely atypical experience) than the previous rainbow unicorn farts fanfic.

Why? Because they provided less detail? You guys are absolute clowns. I have no dog in the fight and don't care about KE. I've criticized KE associates for being too thin skinned (and I still think they can be). But this type of shit proves their point. If you have a concrete disagreement with what a KE associate is saying, go at it. But to blindly attack KE associates for having a positive experience? How pathetic. The idea is that none of the thousands of KE associates can have a glowing review of their experience thus far?

Your obsession with KE is unhealthy if you can't keep yourself from interjecting with your take in an inherently subjective topic.

If I was blindly attacking KE ppl reporting positive experiences, wouldn't I blindly attack both people? Seems like someone is blindly attacking and it's not me.

My "concrete disagreement" is that PR guy #1 reported not a single negative, in tone and style doesn't sound like a human being, and the claim that "Everyone in my class was super friendly and drama free, we have a lot of fun together and there was zero competition" doesn't pass the smell test for any biglaw.

It's certainly possible that different people have different experiences, and that's why I believe the second person. But if you believe that the first one is reflective of someone's actual experiences I have an ntf of a bridge to sell you.