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I'm very grateful for my good fortune as a 1L, and I'm hoping to get some advice. I've managed to snag 4 offers at firms this summer, and can't for the life of me decide which one to take. About me: T10 school, doing very well grades-wise. Want to clerk and go into litigation after I graduate. After that, I'm not really sure.

Current options:

Option 1: V100 boutique firm, major market; pays market salary, limited number of practice groups, but all of them are excellent. A firm I'd consider working for post-grad.

Option 2: V50 major market firm. Larger than option 1, but not huge, pays slightly-under market. More practice group options, but not a firm I want to work for later.

Option 3: NLJ 250 firm in a secondary market. Pays above-market for the area. Lots of good practice groups, but nothing phenomenal. Probably want to bid on this market for 2L summer.

Option 4: V40 firm, secondary market. Pays above-market, but a small office. Office does a little bit of everything, but doesn't seem to be self-contained (there seem to be a lot of projects "filtered down" from the larger offices). A firm I want to work for, and also in a market I'd like to bid on for 2L summer.

I cancelled my remaining callbacks, so these are my options. Thoughts?

1 seems like the pretty clear choice. if you wouldn't work there post-grad, don't consider it now.

Morning bump. I only have until Wednesday next week to decide, so any help is appreciated!

Why would you not take the boutique in this scenario? Are you concerned that you won't get a 2L summer callback from it?

Why are we calling a V100 firm a boutique? General critique here, but people really abuse the term boutique.

Why are we calling a V100 firm a boutique? General critique here, but people really abuse the term boutique.

Well, Quinn or Boies could both be considered boutiques right? But then again if it were one of those two firms OP wouldn't have referred to it as a "v100"

vamedic03 wrote:Why are we calling a V100 firm a boutique? General critique here, but people really abuse the term boutique.

This was my thought, too.

2LLLL wrote:

Why are we calling a V100 firm a boutique? General critique here, but people really abuse the term boutique.

Well, Quinn or Boies could both be considered boutiques right? But then again if it were one of those two firms OP wouldn't have referred to it as a "v100"

200+ attorney litigation powerhouses aren't boutiques... nor are just any midlaw firms... When I think of boutiques (and how the term used to be used), I think of BuckleySandler, Kellog Huber, Robbins Russell, etc.

Yeah I agree with you VA, was just playing devil's advocate

Boutique to me has two parts - (1) specialized practice area, and (2) small size.

While Quinn and Boies meet (1), they (and every other firm on the Vault or NLJ list) fail to meet (2)

OP here:

The V100 firm is fairly small . . . don't really know what "boutique" means, but have seen this firm called a boutique several times here on this site. Not that it really matters . . . nitpicking aside, its a small firm (for the V100) with a relatively small number of practice groups, most of which are top-notch.

Tanicius wrote:Why would you not take the boutique in this scenario? Are you concerned that you won't get a 2L summer callback from it?

The "boutique" firm has traditionally extended 2L offers to every 1L it takes on. What's more concerning is not taking a firm in the secondary market to "prove" I'd like to be there long-term (this isn't necessarily true, but seems important for this market).

OP, what kind of ties do you have to the secondary market already? If you grew up there or went to undergrad in that area, then I don't think you need to worry. If you have no ties whatsoever, then I'd wonder whether working there your 1L summer would even be sufficient, especially if its a really insular market.

If you're really worried about proving ties to this market, then work for a firm there- ultimately the fact that you're even working for a large firm 1L puts you ahead of the vast majority of your competitors.

2LLLL wrote:OP, what kind of ties do you have to the secondary market already? If you grew up there or went to undergrad in that area, then I don't think you need to worry. If you have no ties whatsoever, then I'd wonder whether working there your 1L summer would even be sufficient, especially if its a really insular market.

If you're really worried about proving ties to this market, then work for a firm there- ultimately the fact that you're even working for a large firm 1L puts you ahead of the vast majority of your competitors.

OP here: I'm from the city originally. Law school is several time zones away, though.

Thanks for the advice. It's between the V100 and the V40 secondary now. Still having a tough time, but getting closer to a decision.

Work during the summer for whichever one you think you'd want to work for once you graduate. End of story.

I hate this thread title. Very dramatic and cliche'. That is all.