Best 1L internship option for corporate law? Forum

[barkingbug]

Most agree that a paid legal summer job is close to impossible as a 1L. I am hoping to end up in a (likely mid-sized) regional firm practicing corporate law upon graduation. I have heard from some that what you do as a 1L summer intern is irrelevant as long as it is in the legal field. I don't think I buy that.

What do you think are the best places to intern? I suspect that interning for a judge would be at the top of the list. Is the AG's office up there toward the top? Anything else?

Essentially, I am looking for a goal to shoot for, rather than just taking the first thing I can get because "it doesn't matter what you do 1L summer." Thank you.

[TTH]

From what I've been able to gather here and from the people at my school, 1L summer is mainly about getting something to talk about during your fall interviews. So, as long as it's something legal, the more interesting the better. The exclusivity and prestige of the 1L job helps as much as it demonstrates that have already got something that was competitive over your classmates.

Judicial internship is good, especially if it's with a Judge you'll actually get contact with. Some summer interns never even meet their judges.

[Anonymous User]

I've spoken to the hiring partner at Cravath about 1L legal work. He said that substantive legal work is necessary, but if it fits in line with what you want to do then it's better. So if you're really interested in securities regulation, securities litigation or corporate governance, SEC Honors would be a top choice. If you're interested in working on financial institutions regulation, FDIC or Federal Reserve would be good.

But even then, he said the benefit is marginal at best. It's impossible to state with any definitiveness that those who scored a prestigious 1L job are in any better position for OCI considering that the reason they got the 1L prestige job was because their resume and transcript were already stellar.

[HugerThanSoup]

Just do something that interests you. As long as its legal work, your 1L summer will not make or break you. Grades/school are SO much more important. Honestly, as long as you can talk intelligently about your summer, and have something interesting to say, you'll be fine.

Disclosure: 1L summer spent doing criminal law; 2L OCI offer accepted in corporate at V5 firm.

Update: FWIW, my gf spent the summer doing human rights law as an RA and she'll be at a V10 doing corporate litigation.

[Lem37]

Just do something that interests you. As long as its legal work, your 1L summer will not make or break you. Grades/school are SO much more important. Honestly, as long as you can talk intelligently about your summer, and have something interesting to say, you'll be fine.

Disclosure: 1L summer spent doing criminal law; 2L OCI offer accepted in corporate at V5 firm.

Update: FWIW, my gf spent the summer doing human rights law as an RA and she'll be at a V10 doing corporate litigation.

TITCR. Do something that interests you. As long as your passion comes through, employers do not care.