I'm not someone going into biglaw to leave biglaw, but certainly I think that it is smart to think about such things.
I have an offer from a V20 firm. I've heard two things.
(1) From biglaw associates: "The second you start here, legal recruiters will be calling your phone off the hook trying to get you to their firm instead."
(2) From midlaw associates: "I get resumes from biglaw associates and I just toss them out because I know they haven't actually done anything!"
Biglaw and exit options Forum
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- BruceWayne
- Posts: 2034
- Joined: Sat Aug 14, 2010 9:36 pm
Re: Biglaw and exit options
I'm very curious to hear the answers you get. As many on here claim that 1. The big NYC up or out high leverage pyramid scheme is "bullshit" and that "I"m making it up" and 2. That the reason many people leave NYC biglaw early is because they want to, not because they are forced out, and that they have "many" options available to them upon leaving a biglaw firm in NYC (assuming a "high vault rank").
- vanwinkle
- Posts: 8953
- Joined: Sun Dec 21, 2008 3:02 am
Re: Biglaw and exit options
Based on what I've gathered I think the truth is somewhere between the two. I don't think people are forced out, that the attrition is natural, but also that the system at many top firms is a pyramid scheme with that attrition in mind. The firms know they'll make an overall profit out of you if they get at least 3-4 years from you, but they don't want too many partners, so they're happy to see people go.BruceWayne wrote:I'm very curious to hear the answers you get. As many on here claim that 1. The big NYC up or out high leverage pyramid scheme is "bullshit" and that "I"m making it up" and 2. That the reason many people leave NYC biglaw early is because they want to, not because they are forced out, and that they have "many" options available to them upon leaving a biglaw firm in NYC (assuming a "high vault rank").
In the past the way things went was fairly gentle from what I understood; people who didn't seem like a good fit were gently guided toward the door, and typically partners would give them help and use their connections to find them something more to their liking. Given that many top firms have sent people to, for example, federal government positions, they have plenty of connections and could in fact find "many" options for the associates that were headed out. People they wanted to keep and turn into partners, on the other hand, were much more aggressively encouraged to stay.
However, ITE I'm not sure how much things have really changed, given the rounds of massive and sudden layoffs that were unlike anything the legal industry had seen. Some firms managed to avoid doing that, others now have a reputation for hanging lower-level associates out to dry, so things are going to be shaken up for a while I think.
- Kohinoor
- Posts: 2641
- Joined: Sat Oct 25, 2008 5:51 pm
Re: Biglaw and exit options
Both could be true. As a biglaw paralegal, attorneys were definitely always getting calls from recruiters. On the other hand, attorneys that are unemployed can have a very hard time transitioning even with a biglaw background.Anonymous User wrote:I'm not someone going into biglaw to leave biglaw, but certainly I think that it is smart to think about such things.
I have an offer from a V20 firm. I've heard two things.
(1) From biglaw associates: "The second you start here, legal recruiters will be calling your phone off the hook trying to get you to their firm instead."
(2) From midlaw associates: "I get resumes from biglaw associates and I just toss them out because I know they haven't actually done anything!"
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