Accepting Multiple Offers? Forum

[Lawguru]

I have a friend who accepted two offers. Is this allowed? Or even ethical? If the answer is yes, I feel like a putts for choosing one and rejecting the rest. rather than giving myself a couple weeks to brew. Don't get me wrong, I feel very fortunate to have offers period. I am just curious what the NALP standard on this is.

[Unemployed]

You can't accept more than 1 offer under NALP. But then again, as many firms have demonstrated during the recession, NALP rules are just guidelines. See http://abovethelaw.com/2009/08/accept-y ... l-of-them/

[Pablo Ramirez]

Many people accept two offers. They call it "splitting the summer."

[Anonymous Loser]

You can't accept more than 1 offer under NALP.

I am pretty familiar with the NALP guidelines, and split both my 1L and 2L summers: can you point to the provision that states this rule? I believe NALP only restricts open offers; candidates are free to accept as many positions as they would like.

[IzziesGal]

I don't think OP is talking about splitting summers - that's an entirely different beast. I think OP is talking about someone who accepted two offers out of uncertainty, hoping to game the system and get some extra time to come to a final conclusion. I have no rule to point to, but my hunch is that this is entirely unethical. Your friend is going to have to rescind an acceptance at some point down the line (again, assuming this is a non-split situation), which I can only imagine will bring some sort of consequences (even if minimal).

[Cavalier]

What "your friend" did is stupid, since it unnecessarily harms a firm and makes you look bad. If a firm gives you an offer, they like you; burning bridges with the firm by rescinding an acceptance is unwise since you may end up looking for a job there somewhere in the future. Also, it may cause the firm to view your school negatively, hurting students in the future, and it may have negatively impacted the prospects of students being considered for offers after the acceptance occurred.

If your friend did this with firms like S&C or Skadden, it's probably not a big deal; firms with massive class sizes aren't going to be affected by the loss of one. But if the firm only had a class size of 5, rescinding the acceptance will certainly have consequences.

[IzziesGal]

I agree with the above poster and wanted to add --> I think that firms report to NALP who they give offers to and who accepts. If the firms find out that you accepted at two, I imagine one of them would be wholly justified in rescinding your offer - and that the other would be justified in following suit, leaving you with no offers on the table. I don't know if this is far fetched, but it seems plausible.

[Aqualibrium]

I agree with the above poster and wanted to add --> I think that firms report to NALP who they give offers to and who accepts. If the firms find out that you accepted at two, I imagine one of them would be wholly justified in rescinding your offer - and that the other would be justified in following suit, leaving you with no offers on the table. I don't know if this is far fetched, but it seems plausible.

I know that the bolded is not true. I suppose you were justified in assuming that though; nalp passes its self off as some sort of regulatory agency.

P.S. I hope that doesn't come off as rude. You seemed uncertain about whether or not that statement was actually true, so I was just correcting you. Don't want to sidetrack the thread with an argument.

[IzziesGal]

I agree with the above poster and wanted to add --> I think that firms report to NALP who they give offers to and who accepts. If the firms find out that you accepted at two, I imagine one of them would be wholly justified in rescinding your offer - and that the other would be justified in following suit, leaving you with no offers on the table. I don't know if this is far fetched, but it seems plausible.

I know that the bolded is not true. I suppose you were justified in assuming that though; nalp passes its self off as some sort of regulatory agency.

The Director of Recruiting at the firm I used to work with told me that she had to report who she gave offers and callbacks to. It's a V15 firm, and she was a member of the ethics comm of NALP, so maybe that's why she adhered to the heightened standard.

Regardless, accepting two offers STILL can't be good if both firms find out.

[Aqualibrium]

I agree with the above poster and wanted to add --> I think that firms report to NALP who they give offers to and who accepts. If the firms find out that you accepted at two, I imagine one of them would be wholly justified in rescinding your offer - and that the other would be justified in following suit, leaving you with no offers on the table. I don't know if this is far fetched, but it seems plausible.

I know that the bolded is not true. I suppose you were justified in assuming that though; nalp passes its self off as some sort of regulatory agency.

The Director of Recruiting at the firm I used to work with told me that she had to report who she gave offers and callbacks to. It's a V15 firm, and she was a member of the ethics comm of NALP, so maybe that's why she adhered to the heightened standard.

Regardless, accepting two offers STILL can't be good if both firms find out.

Agreed, accepting two offers is just a stupid thing to do. With regards to the reporting, perhaps the firms I worked at just weren't as strict about following nalp guidelines? I know they report the number of clerks they have, but never saw or heard of any sign that they would report our names as well.

[ajaj46]

regardless, OP or his friend is a jerk. it's easy enough to get an extension if need be.

people are trying to get jobs. double accepting is a shit thing to do

[Lawguru]

regardless, OP or his friend is a jerk. it's easy enough to get an extension if need be.

people are trying to get jobs. double accepting is a shit thing to do

I promise you, it is not me. I already accepted an offer with a firm, and feel very fortunate. At the same time, I was kicking myself since after I accepted my offer I heard from another firm that offers some more perks (ie promising you a job with the firm upon graduation), but was also not as well regarded as the firm I accepted from. Thus, I had a convo with good friend who suggested I accept both, he said he did, and I thought that was ludicrous and frankly terrible to do. I am glad you all confirmed my notion.

[Pablo Ramirez]

Ur friendz a doooooooshh

[Kohinoor]

Odd vitriol here. When firms screw over students, people see it as a business decision. Isn't a student entitled to the same dispassionate choices?

[Pablo Ramirez]

Odd vitriol here. When firms screw over students, people see it as a business decision. Isn't a student entitled to the same dispassionate choices?

^^^^^^ doooooshhhh sympathizer

[Lawguru]

Odd vitriol here. When firms screw over students, people see it as a business decision. Isn't a student entitled to the same dispassionate choices?

You make a good point, but in the end, it seems to me that law students aren't in the current market situation to have leverage. It seems that this mind said is sort of an entitlement mindset. Law firms are businesses. They hire based upon their needs and try to be as sustainable as possible. This calls for tough decisions at times. In the end, we can complain all we want to about not having a job because it was rescinded by the firm, but we as law students were the suckers who had all the information at our fingertips to decide whether or not to become lawyers, and we chose to despite the current problems the legal market is facing.

Of course, it is easy for me--someone who has landed a very good summer job with a good track record of hiring nearly all their SAs--to say this. It doesn't make it any less true though.

[Kohinoor]

Odd vitriol here. When firms screw over students, people see it as a business decision. Isn't a student entitled to the same dispassionate choices?

^^^^^^ doooooshhhh sympathizer

I'm merely outside the asylum.

[UnTouChablE]

Fuck law firms. They dont care about you, you might as well look out for yourself. Accept then make up an unverifiable but sufficiently heavy excuse to rescind an offer.

No one can get mad if "your finance had to move to [insert city] because she wants to be with her mother and you have to be with her"

Goodluck to your friend.

[RVP11]

Fuck law firms. They dont care about you, you might as well look out for yourself. Accept then make up an unverifiable but sufficiently heavy excuse to rescind an offer.

No one can get mad if "your finance had to move to [insert city] because she wants to be with her mother and you have to be with her"

Goodluck to your friend.

Reneging on an acceptance isn't stupid because you might hurt a law firm's feelings - you're just a summer associate, they can take the rejection. It's stupid because you will tarnish your reputation.

[Renzo]

Fuck law firms. They dont care about you, you might as well look out for yourself. Accept then make up an unverifiable but sufficiently heavy excuse to rescind an offer.

No one can get mad if "your finance had to move to [insert city] because she wants to be with her mother and you have to be with her"

Goodluck to your friend.

Reneging on an acceptance isn't stupid because you might hurt a law firm's feelings - you're just a summer associate, they can take the rejection. It's stupid because you will tarnish your reputation.

All true, and let's not forget that it's fucking pointless. Your friend still has to pick one firm. What's stopping him/her from holding the offers open and picking one to accept?

[Blindmelon]

Odd vitriol here. When firms screw over students, people see it as a business decision. Isn't a student entitled to the same dispassionate choices?

+1. Just tell the firm you eventually reject that due to unfortunate economic conditions you have to let them go and that you deeply regret the decision, and wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors - you know the firm will have a fulfilling and exciting future ahead of them, but due to realities in the current economic climate, you will not be joining them.

[2LLLL]

Odd vitriol here. When firms screw over students, people see it as a business decision. Isn't a student entitled to the same dispassionate choices?

+1. Just tell the firm you eventually reject that due to unfortunate economic conditions you have to let them go and that you deeply regret the decision, and wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors - you know the firm will have a fulfilling and exciting future ahead of them, but due to realities in the current economic climate, you will not be joining them.

Here is a template:

Dear [Insert Firm Name]:

Thank you for taking the time to offer me a summer associate position on [insert date of offer]. Your firm has very impressive credentials and has a bright future ahead. Unfortunately, I can only accept a position with a limited number of firms, and there were numerous high-quality applicants for my services as a summer associate. I regret to inform you that at this time I cannot accept your offer for a summer associate position. I wish you the best of luck in all future endeavors.

Regards,

[Your name here]

[Blindmelon]

Odd vitriol here. When firms screw over students, people see it as a business decision. Isn't a student entitled to the same dispassionate choices?

+1. Just tell the firm you eventually reject that due to unfortunate economic conditions you have to let them go and that you deeply regret the decision, and wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors - you know the firm will have a fulfilling and exciting future ahead of them, but due to realities in the current economic climate, you will not be joining them.

Here is a template:

Dear [Insert Firm Name]:

Thank you for taking the time to offer me a summer associate position on [insert date of offer]. Your firm has very impressive credentials and has a bright future ahead. Unfortunately, I can only accept a position with a limited number of firms, and there were numerous high-quality applicants for my services as a summer associate. I regret to inform you that at this time I cannot accept your offer for a summer associate position because I received an offer at a firm that is 2 spots higher in the Vault rankings. I wish you the best of luck in all future endeavors.

Regards,

[Your name here]

FTFY

[Cavalier]

Odd vitriol here. When firms screw over students, people see it as a business decision. Isn't a student entitled to the same dispassionate choices?

If it were only the firm that gets harmed, I wouldn't lose any sleep over it. But especially in this economy, students shouldn't be taking unnecessary actions that harm other students. Suppose a small law firm fills 4 of its 5 SA spots by mid September. Even though several students may still have callbacks scheduled in late September, these students will now have a very slim chance of receiving an offer since the firm can now afford to be extremely selective. Presumably, if the firm has only 1 SA spot open instead of 2, it will only extend offers to half as many students. So wrongfully accepting could cost other students offers.

Not to mention that the firm may view the rescinding student's school negatively, especially if it's a less-known school that doesn't often place people at that firm. This will hurt students in future classes.

[dood]

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